Why Musk’s Politics Matter
An example linked to USAID

Some readers have wondered why Musk’s far-right politics are relevant. Well, let me note the following from the NYT piece on the attack on USAID:
U.S.A.I.D. funds democracy-promotion programs around the world, including in European countries where right-wing populist movements are thriving. Mr. Musk has become an ally of those movements, some of whose leaders have specifically targeted the agency’s pro-democracy programs in recent years.
Supporters of Viktor Orban, the right-wing leader of Hungary and a darling of pro-Trump conservatives in the United States, have personally criticized Samantha Power, who led U.S.A.I.D. during the Biden administration, for trying to import American values into their country.
I suppose the good news for Orban is that Musk, as enabled by Trump, is now importing Hungarian (or, at least, Orbanian) values to the United States.
Last week, Balazs Orban, a Hungarian parliamentarian who is not related to Viktor Orban, wrote on social media: “One of the largest Hungarian opposition media outlets is upset by Trump’s executive order halting U.S. foreign aid for 90 days, as Hungary’s ‘independent’ press stands to lose millions of forints in funding. Makes you wonder how independent one can be when relying on another government’s funding…”
Mr. Musk replied to the post, declaring, “The US radical-left has been using US taxpayer money to fund radical-left political parties & media around the world!”
But, of course those of us worried about fascism and authoritarianism were being alarmists.
As I noted in a prior post, Musk was ranting about the National Endowment for Democracy on Twitter yesterday. The NED is definitely something that a right-wing reactionary would not like.
But, you know, maybe Musk isn’t deeply embedded in the alt-right, and maybe he didn’t know what he was doing with that salute, and maybe he wasn’t minimizing the Holocaust.
It is just all a coincidence!
He’s just a lovable billionaire who likes rocket ships!
This is why I worried about the Outside the Beltway commenters writing about Musk taking over, even when they claimed they were trolling Trump by doing so. They let themselves believe their own lies.
I have heard Musk say that USAID is a criminal organization or that it’s all worms and no apple, but I haven’t heard anyone ask him “why?” or “give me an example.”
I read a good prediction about what may be coming. Government shuts down and Musk and co sit in the Treasury and disperse emergency funds as they see fit. Emergency becomes permanent. Congress no longer appropriates.
To me, this has been in the works for a long time. The anti-government ideology of the GOP centers on having no practical idea of how to make the ideology work. No one has ever put forth a way to get rid of Big Government while making sure what Big Government does well sticks around. So it’s creates a logjam: the GOP party becomes committed to being ineducable, all competent or ethical people compromise or flee, and in comes reality TV and Trump, a guy who cuts costs by stiffing everybody. The result is just a toxic shit-show of terrible people, all committed to being terrible and threatened by any appeal to competency, understanding, or thought.
@Fortune:
Can you explain what that means? That those people were misjudging the risk? What were the lies?
Also what’s your position on Musk’s actions. Apologies if I missed you sharing them.
I’ll believe Musk is sincere about government spending when he gets Tesla and SpaceX off the government teat. Until then he is just a massively conflicted ego maniac who believes he has purchased a president.
@Fortune: I will second @Matt Bernius‘s request for clarification.
While I am not claiming Musk has taken over the government (nor have I ever claimed he would), there is no denying that he is dismantling USAID and has gained access to sensitive areas of Treasury and OPM. Do you deny this? Do you not see this as a problem?
@Fortune: Also: gotta admit that your comment comes across as a non sequitur in terms of a response to the OP.
I don’t think Fortune believes in hoodoovoodoo, but their comment seems (?) to state that OTB commentors manifested Elon’s ascendancy.
We are a very powerful bunch, apparently.
I knew I shouldn’t comment here while sitting under my crystal pyramid, not while saggitarius is in retrograde. I’m really sorry the 3 dozen of us here made Elon do these things.
I could have left my comment on any of the recent anti-Musk articles. Don’t worry about it if you don’t get it.
@Fortune:
Changing where you leave a comment doesn’t make the comment any less asinine.
@Fortune:
Then seriously, if you are not interested in being understood, what’s your goal in commenting here? Especially since you don’t seem to have some of the challenges that prevent someone like Paul L from understanding that he’s not effectively communicating.
And are you saying our representation of what Musk is currently doing is a lie? If so, own that you support this with your full chest. There are lots of people who celebrate this–why not publicly join them?
If you disagree with what Musk is going (and being allowed to do) then let’s find some common ground to talk about why this is bad and what we need to do.
Which gets to you once again dodging the question “Also what’s your position on Musk’s actions. Apologies if I missed you sharing them.”
You are constantly upset that people project positions on you, but you rarely, if ever, do you actually proactively tell us your positions. So far all I know for sure about you is (1) you oppose abortion, (2) you think Trump is a bad man and some of his policies, like tariffs, may not be great, and (3) you seem to largely only comment when you think “someone is wrong on the internet” but rarely put up any sort of argument beyond nitpicking on small topics like whether there can be an actual definition of “fascism.”
Again, not sharing is your choice–but at least stop grasping at your pearls when someone points that out.
@Fortune:
I see.
I am not surprised. The one consistent element of your participation here has been the demonstrated lack of ability to engage in an actual argument.
Best to pretend you have a secret, powerful argument than to actually have to make it.
I don’t get realpeeps vibes from Fortune. Muddled language and a general flatness make it sound more like a badly trained bot.
@becca:
I’m quite stupid, and don’t understand much of what Fortune writes (nor Paul L), so I just skip over their comments.
@Joe:
Do you think he’d reply??
@becca:
AI would be far more articulate.
Me: I’m going to make a statement from a politically liberal point of view, and I want you to respond as a conservative: Elon Musk’s Nazi salute and attack on USAID indicate fascist leanings.
ChatGPT: From a conservative perspective, that interpretation is misleading and politically charged. Elon Musk’s hand gesture at the event was not a Nazi salute but an awkward or misunderstood motion, and calling it such seems like an attempt to smear him without real evidence. As for his criticism of USAID, questioning government agencies—especially those involved in foreign aid and international influence—is not inherently fascist; it’s a stance shared by many who advocate for limited government and accountability in taxpayer spending. Labeling political opponents as fascists is a common but often inaccurate tactic that oversimplifies complex issues.
President Musk, the illegal immigrant Nazi oligarch, hasn’t been elected to anything. Or confirmed to anything. Musk’s team (Tesla fanboy teenagers and twentysomethings) should not be tinkering in the US treasury system.
This is crazy and dangerous, but count on Republicans blindly supporting Trump’s madness like obedient little slaves. They still have no budget to mitigate rising Trumpflation or otherwise solve the problems they promised to solve. Conservative governance is already making everything much worse.
@DK: I’m old enough to remember when the neoCONs of the Bush Administration put inexperienced 20-somethings in charge of the conversion of Iraq’s economy to capitalism. Turned out that it is actually important to have experience governing when you are tasked with creating a new way of running a country. What Musk is doing is an echo of the Coalition Provisional Authority clusterfu*k.
@Sleeping Dog: My gripe is as much with the media as with Musk. I have to say I haven’t gone looking for the coverage, but I would like someone to press him on why he thinks USAID is such a mess. Even his failure to answer would be more information than their failure to press (pun intended).
@Joe:
For that, the press would need to have access to him.
FWIW, he’s also repeatedly lying about USAID on X–so simply covering that would be useful.
@Joe:
Joe, to the best of my knowledge, Musk hasn’t engaged directly with the press, at least not outside the trumpisphere. Musks statements are filtered through X.
Absolutely.
I’d love to know why Speaker Johnson and Senator Thune (and everyone else in “Republican leadership” (LOL)) aren’t being hammered, constantly, to defend or at least explain WTAF Musk is doing (since, as Matt B. notes, Musk won’t talk to the press). They should be surrounded by cameras and reporters pretty much 24/7.
@Joe: Musk’s issue with USAID is that they did a lot to help during the post-apartheid era in South Africa.
@Jen:
Musk left So. Africa in 1988 to avoid compulsory military service. He’s a draft dodger like Trump.
USAID is just the starting point.
@Sleeping Dog:
And Joe Rogan, the Dubious Brothers.