- Bernie Sanders says Elon Musk is utilizing his wealth and political clout to undermine US democracy.
- Musk lambasted a authorities funding deal and mentioned a shutdown could be the Democrats’ fault.
- “Are Republicans beholden to the American folks? Or President Musk?” Sanders requested on X.
Elon Musk is wielding his immense wealth and political energy to stress US lawmakers, shifting America from democracy to oligarchy, Sen. Bernie Sanders says.
In two current X posts, the Vermont senator known as out Musk’s affect over Republicans and his warnings to legislators if they do not vote the way in which he needs.
“The US Congress this week got here to an settlement to fund our authorities,” he wrote late Wednesday. “Elon Musk, who turned $200 BILLION richer since Trump was elected, objected. Are Republicans beholden to the American folks? Or President Musk? That is oligarchy at work.”
“Elon Musk, the richest man on the planet, is threatening to unseat elected officers if they don’t comply with his orders to close down the federal government through the holidays,” he mentioned in a Thursday put up. “Are we nonetheless a democracy or have we already moved to oligarchy and authoritarianism?”
Musk blasted the funding invoice in query as bloated and overcomplicated and wrote on X that “any member of the Home or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending invoice deserves to be voted out in 2 years!”
He threw his weight behind Republicans’ different invoice, hailing it as cleaner and easier. Furthermore, he posted that it could be the Democratic Occasion’s fault if an settlement is not reached and the federal government shuts down.
Each Trump’s workforce and Musk have pushed again towards the concept he is pulling Republicans’ strings. Musk has mentioned he is solely bringing issues to the eye of his followers, and so they’re free to voice their assist.
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO’s web value hit a document $486 billion on Tuesday, up $257 billion from the beginning of the yr — a determine that exceeds the fortune of the world’s second-richest man, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. Tesla inventory has slid since then, however Musk was nonetheless value $455 billion at Thursday’s shut.
As Sanders wrote, Musk’s wealth surged after President Trump’s election victory as Tesla inventory rode a broader market rally, and buyers wagered the automaker would profit from Musk’s shut ties to the White Home. Moreover, SpaceX was valued at a document $350 billion this month, boosting the value of Musk’s stake within the rocket firm.
Sanders has known as out Musk a number of instances in his criticisms of wealth inequality, which frequently single out billionaires for having an excessive amount of affect and paying too little in taxes.
“By no means earlier than in American historical past have so few billionaires, so few folks had a lot wealth and a lot energy,” he mentioned in a clip from “Meet the Press” that he just lately shared on X.
“We won’t go world wide saying, ‘Oh properly, you recognize in Russia, Putin has an oligarchy,” Sanders continued. “Nicely, we have got an oligarchy right here, too.”
The progressive lawmaker has additionally clashed with Musk’s Large Tech friends. Sanders just lately informed Invoice Gates that he was a “very progressive man” who deserved to be financially rewarded for his contributions to society as Microsoft’s cofounder — however to not the tune of billions of {dollars}.
“How a lot do you deserve? Are you able to make it on a billion? Suppose you would feed the household? Most likely. Pay the lease? Perhaps,” Sanders quipped.
In response to Sanders saying billionaires should not exist in 2019, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, now the world’s third-richest particular person, agreed that “a number of the wealth that may be collected is unreasonable.”
