President-elect Donald Trump is trying to set this fact straight. He, not Elon Musk, is the one making the decisions.
“No, he’s not going to be president, I’m telling you,” President Trump said Sunday at Turning Point USA’s America Fest in Phoenix in his first major speech since the November election. He said with a laugh. “And I’m safe. You know why? He can’t be. He wasn’t born in this country.”
The president-elect made the sarcastic comment while praising the South African-born Musk as a “wonderful person.” Musk, along with technology entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, will lead the Department of Government Efficiency, which aims to shrink the size of government and cut spending.
Trump’s comments come as Democrats seek to use Musk as a foil, accusing him of undermining the president-elect.
Just days ago, Mr. Trump, along with Mr. Musk, intervened in House Republicans’ initial government spending plan, creating chaos as Congress raced against time to avoid a government shutdown.
Some Congressional Democrats expressed concern about Musk’s influence over Republicans in Congress and ridiculed Trump, claiming Musk was in charge. The Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump group, released a video calling out Trump.vice president” to “President Musk.”
Republicans have sought to downplay the rift between the two parties, and Trump’s campaign has dismissed the claims as “ridiculous.” Amid last week’s spending bill debacle, President Trump’s incoming White House press secretary, Caroline Leavitt, said, “President Trump is the leader of the Republican Party. Full stop.”
“There are all kinds of hoaxes out there, but the new one is, ‘President Trump gave the presidency to Elon Musk,'” Trump told the audience Sunday. “No, no. That’s not happening.”
Musk has flexed his political muscles in recent months, funneling more than $260 million into the 2024 election to support the Republican Party. He said last week that he plans to give money to moderate primary challengers to Democratic incumbents. As Speaker Mike Johnson’s future appears to be in jeopardy, some Republicans have floated him in recent days as a possible candidate to become the next speaker of the House.
Musk’s comments came toward the end of President Trump’s more than hour-long victory lap speech, in which he touted his popular vote victory, praised his “all-star” Cabinet picks and announced his next term. He outlined his goals for the term.
President Trump’s speech was similar to speeches he gave during the 2024 election cycle. He made bold claims about lowering taxes and taking back the Panama Canal, agreed to his plan to end “woke” ideology in the military, and vowed not to change the names of military bases.
