Turning Friends into Enemies: Musk's American Party vs. Trump's "Great America"
Not a minute to wait! The day after Trump celebrated his victory and signed the $3 trillion "Great America" bill, his former close ally, who once visited the White House during the week and Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate on weekends, and was as close as a shadow, Musk announced the establishment of the American Party. This party targets what Musk described as the "disgusting" $3 trillion tax and spending bill known as "Great America." Their friendship was once as intense as some propaganda films suggest, and their split was as sudden as lightning in the sky. They embraced like babies and tore apart like babies.
Once so close, Musk invested $270 million to help Trump return to the White House, and after Trump's election, he was appointed to head the government efficiency committee, seeking significant cuts to the federal budget and massive layoffs. However, his goals were far from achieved, and his reputation was severely damaged, with Tesla car sales experiencing an unprecedented decline. Soon after Musk left the White House in May, he engaged in a fierce debate with Trump over his "Great America" tax and spending bill, accusing it of burdening future generations with huge debts, vowing to form a party if the bill passed. Indeed, the day after Trump officially signed the Great America bill, Musk announced the birth of the "American Party," saying, "Waste and corruption are leading the country to bankruptcy. We live in a one-party system rather than a democracy. Today, we establish the American Party to return freedom to you."
Although born in South Africa, he will not be able to run for president in the future, as candidates must be born in the United States. This does not hinder Musk from building a party to influence legislative elections and thus impact American politics. His platform has not been fully disclosed, and the few goals that have been revealed seem not particularly "grand": winning one or two seats in the Senate and several seats in the House of Representatives during the midterm elections. However, if successful, this could make them a "key minority," balancing the two-party system that he sees as deviating from the "American direction."
Olivier Laskar, the digital editor of the magazine "Science and Future" and the author of the book "Elon Musk, A Person Challenging Science," said in an interview with The Huffington Post, "Musk's declaration of forming a party is first and foremost a retaliation against Trump, because Musk believes his role was not given enough recognition by the President of the United States. Through this statement, we see a self-radicalization of someone who became intoxicated by group power during his time in government."
Musk has not yet detailed his political plans, and what people expect from him is difficult to determine, as Musk is unique; he is not an ideological person, nor is he like other tech figures, such as right-wing figures like Peter Thiel, the founder of PayPal. Musk was once close to the Democrats, but later moved towards the Republicans under Biden. In addition to concerns about debt, he currently has no known political plans. On social issues, he believes the "woke" ideology has already threatened the United States, but it is hard to say how different he is from Trump on this point.
The U.S. political system is a two-party system. Will Musk's desired "three-party system" become a reality? Experts analyze that the idea of a "third party" in the U.S. is somewhat like "a curse." It is a plan that often appears, many politicians have proposed it, but it has never been realized, because it is not part of American political culture. In the eyes of Americans, it is a vote with no meaning at all.
Additionally, many people doubt whether Musk's personality is suitable for politics. To achieve political goals, you need allies and a grasp of interpersonal relationships, which Musk lacks. He is a driving force in company management and technology, even being called a genius by some, but he is very rough in interpersonal interactions. In political settings, such as Trump's victory celebrations or White House events, he often appears uncomfortable, indicating a lack of the appeal needed to be a political leader, seemingly unable to take on the responsibility of leading a party.
However, American affairs expert Romuald Szkil says that Musk's announcement has made the Democrats delighted, and for Trump, the billionaire's party declaration is a heavy blow before the midterm elections. This expert believes, "This is an unprecedented political earthquake in American history, because it is the first time since 1860 that a powerful third-party party has been declared in the U.S. Because we are talking about the richest person in the world, who can create a party, buy newspapers, create media..."
After reports surfaced that Musk was preparing to form a party, directly targeting the midterm elections, Trump threatened to send him "back to South Africa." After Musk officially announced the formation of the party, Trump had not yet issued a formal response. His treasury secretary, Brian Bensons, criticized Musk on Sunday, saying, "Mind your own business and don't get involved in politics."
The next step, the most important question people are concerned about is whether his third party can truly influence the U.S. midterm elections, especially whether it can lead to the defeat of the Republicans.
Source: rfi
Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1836940021838856/
Statement: The article represents the views of the author.