“He will not become president": Trump speaks about Elon Musk's growing political influence
Kyiv • UNN
Donald Trump has denied suggestions that Elon Musk has “usurped” power after a week of political confrontations. Musk actively opposed the initial government funding bill, publishing more than 100 objections.
US President-elect Donald Trump has dismissed any suggestion that he is being "usurped" by his influential billionaire ally Elon Musk, after a week in which Musk helped derail a bipartisan government funding bill to avert a shutdown, NBC News reports, UNN writes.
Details
Trump said that the idea that he had "ceded the presidency" to Musk was a fiction, and that even if Musk wanted the job, he could not get it because of the Constitutional requirement that the president of the United States must be a natural-born citizen . Musk was born in South Africa.
"No, he's not going to be president, I'll tell you that," Trump said. - "And I'm safe. You know why he can't become president? He was not born in this country.
Trump's appearance at the conference followed a tense standoff in Washington last week that nearly led to a government shutdown.
According to the newspaper, "Trump and Musk have effectively failed" the emergency spending measure proposed by Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, forcing lawmakers to find an acceptable alternative that would allow the government to operate hours before a possible shutdown.
Musk, who owns the social media site X, posted his objections to the initial spending deal more than 100 times - a preview of how he might use his influence and his megaphone to shape policy in Trump's second term, the publication notes.
Democrats mockingly began calling him "President Musk." History shows that anyone who outshines Trump or draws attention away from him does not stay in his orbit for long, the newspaper points out.
"However, Trump's statements indicate that he does not want to disagree with Musk; at the moment, they have common interests. Musk spent more than $250 million to help Trump get elected," the newspaper writes.
Speakers at the conference downplayed any friction between Musk and Trump.
In his speech on Thursday night, Donald Trump Jr, the eldest son of the US president-elect, said: "You see what the media is trying to do to break up my father's relationship with Elon. They're trying to cause this rift to prevent these guys from doing what they're going to do best, and we can't let that happen.
Another speaker, Senator Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma, said in an interview with NBC News that Musk is playing an important role in helping to eliminate government waste.
"We're bringing in a private sector consultant to take a different look at what we're spending money on," Mullin said.
As for Musk's use of his social media platform, Mullin said: "He has the right to do that. He's still a private citizen. He's no different than anyone else.
