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When Elon Musk said he loved Donald Trump “so much that a righteous man can love another,” the emetic effect was widespread. Trump is one of the few remaining people in Washington DC that likes to have musk around. However, after giving Musk more power than any private figure in US history, the president is watching his beneficiary turn into an Albatros. The question is how Trump will get rid of musk, not if.
The pricing of having as co-help is already steep. The New York Times chronicled how Trump grabbed Musk’s wings in a hot cabinet meeting last week. Cabinet leaders, instead of the so -called Department of Music Efficiency, would take care of their employment and fire, Trump said. His white house until then was particularly free – in contrast to his first mandate. But it seems that the old staff wants to see the back of the oligarch with electric saw. The confrontation was raised with the intention of encouraging that day.
A measure of Musk’s concern for his falling star is that his visit to Mar-A-Lago last weekend was not originally planned, the interior say. Moreover, Musk has tried to put millions more in Trump’s political action committees and has been rejected. Trump is not known to refuse money. But it would look like Musk was buying his extended attitude. His attitude is falling as fast as the price of tesla shares. Trump’s approval rating has remained stable. With signs of a “recession of Trump” coming, musk can still be a useful lightning rod.
But this is the extent of its overthrow. His pursuit is largely negative. There is no Republican lawmaker or director Trump who is not terrified by Musk’s power. A $ 50 million control to finance a primary challenge could end a senator’s career – $ 10m for a legislator. Musk’s X, which is the informal arm of Maga state transmission, can also destroy the career of a cabinet member. Officials now routinely issue press releases first on X. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, first announced plans to return USAID to X.
There seems to be nothing that Musk does not mean to slander those on his way. This has been evident since he accused a cave surrounded by being a pedophil a few years ago. Musk is acting only as he himself. But his willingness to kill the character is interfering with Rubio’s work. Musk recently threatened to cause a collapse in the first line of Ukraine by attracting its Starlink satellite service. After Poland’s Foreign Minister, Radosław Sikorski, opposed, Musk posted: “Be calm, a small man. . . There is no replacement for Starlink. “Poland is one of Europe’s few countries that Trump has said it will help in the event of an attack. An helpless rubio felt forced to support Musk.
But the cost of keeping him on Trump’s side is rising. In ignorance of how the federal government works, Musk is only causing damage. This also highlights Russell Vought, head of the White House Management and Budget Office, which has spent years drafting plans to deconstruct the administrative state. He was co -author of the 2025 project, the Radical Heritage Foundation project for a second Term Term. The traumatization of America’s civil service will surpass Musk. But Vought is likely to make it less incapable. Nor does he divide Musk’s significant reluctance to go after Pentagon, which is a major source of Federal Musk’s contracts.
It is tempting to think that Musk has a desire of political death. The latest decline in the net worth of the Wannabe trillionaire has also almost deleted his profits after the election. But that would be naive. Doge access to taxpayer accounts, social security data and federal employee data would offer a gold mine to each titanium. Musk’s temptation to grab it for its purposes will be great. But that means keeping Trump’s trust. If Musk has any consciousness, he will wear costumes from now on and keep his offspring outside the oval office. After he brought his four -year -old son, X, to the White House last month, the underwear says Trump demanded that the HMS desk be disinfected. The boy felt just as home as his father.
There is also Musk’s impact on Trump’s China’s policy. As clients in JB, Europe and elsewhere Spurn Tesla and require alternatives for spacex, Musk’s trade support in China is increasing. Musk’s Dovish impact on China’s politics is clear. Trump now sounds almost as interested in the fate of Taiwan as it is in Ukraine. Most of the rest of his team are China Hawks. If and when Trump turns against China, this will be another sign of Musk’s origin.
edward.luse@ft.com
