Former President Donald Trump on Monday admitted that he met recently with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk at Mar-a-Lago, adding that he wasn’t sure if the X owner would support his second bid for the White House.
In a call-in interview on CNBC’s ‘Squawk Box’, Trump was asked if he would get Musk’s “verbal and monetary” support.
To this, the Republican frontrunner said: “I don’t know. I’ve been friendly with him over the years.” He, however, added that Musk may not support him because they both have “opposing views” on electric cars.
“I helped him. I’ve liked him. We obviously have opposing views on a minor subject called electric cars. I’m all for electric cars, but you have to have all of the alternatives. Also, you can’t just go to electric. I mean, you have a grid system in this country that’s obsolete, and a disaster,” Trump said in reference to Musk.
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Trump-Musk’s recent meeting increased the speculations that the billionaire would lend financial support to the Trump campaign as he is facing monetary challenges following a judgment in the E. Jean Carroll defamation case.
Musk, who has been critical of President Joe Biden over US immigration policy, cleared on X (formerly Twitter) that he will not be donating money to either candidate for president.
“Just to be super clear, I am not donating money to either candidate for US President,’ Musk tweeted last week,” Musk tweeted after their meeting.
Trump reiterates support to TikTok, says he views Facebook as people’s ‘enemy’
Raising his voice against a ban on TikTok, Trump asserted that thousands of youngsters are using the Chinese-app and they “will go crazy without it”.
He admitted that there are pros and cons of TikTok, adding that he considers Facebook as “an enemy of the people, along with the media”.
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During the interview, the CNBC journalists recalled that Trump during his presidency deemed TikTok as a national security threat.
Responding to this, the ex-president advocated for US citizens “privacy and data rights.” He confirmed his recent meeting with Jeff Yass, an investor in TikTok and main GOP donor.
Last Friday, Trump expressed doubts about banning TikTok after legislators offered bipartisan legislation requiring the ByteDance to divest from the app or face a US ban.
Following the Capitol riots, Facebook banned Trump in January 2021. However, his account was reinstated by Meta last year.
Vikram Sharma is a globe-trotting journalist with a global perspective on international events. His articles offer readers a global perspective on international events, exploring complex geopolitical issues and providing insights into the world’s most pressing challenges.
