Wherever Donald Trump goes, Elon Musk follows. On social networks, many people have fun saying that the Republican has adopted the boss of Tesla. It must be said that a billionaire of South African origin is omnipresent, to the point of appearing in the family photo of the Trump clan on the evening of the victory – where Melania Trump was absent. From political meetings of the president-elect to golf games, the buyer of X does not let go of Donald Trump one step.
So much so that according to the news site The Daily Beast, some members of the Republican’s transition team would compare Elon Musk to this “guest who doesn’t leave” when the evening is over. “It is omnipresent and takes up a lot of space, there is no doubt about it,” smiles Jérôme Viala-Gaudefroy, doctor of American civilization. But for the author of Trump’s words (Ed. Dalloz, 2024), the problem comes mainly from the influence that this proximity gives it.
Massive “conflicts of interest”
By appointing Elon Musk as minister of “government efficiency”, responsible for slashing the federal budget, Donald Trump is “quasi-illegal”. “The United States will find itself with someone who will be judge and party. He has an incalculable number of contracts with the federal state and it is he who will decide which budgets must be reduced? », indignant Jérôme Viala-Gaudefroy, referring to massive “conflicts of interest”.
In his book Complaint against X. How Elon Musk broke Twitter (Observatory), journalist Ryan Mac noted that “someone so rich, with such an empire and the ear of the American president, this has never happened before.” For him, the boss of Space X has become “the most powerful unelected person in the world”. During his first meeting as president-elect with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, Donald Trump was accompanied by Elon Musk.
The risk of divorce
But can the bromance between the two men really last? “That’s the question everyone is asking. They are very narcissistic, both have a history of conflicts with their business partners and struggle with anything that is constraint or hierarchy,” says Jérôme Viala-Gaudefroy. CNN journalist Kara Swisher also believes that as Trump’s power increases, Elon Musk’s growing need for attention will create friction between the two men.
“The romance could quickly turn into divorce,” says Jérôme Viala-Gaudefroy. If one of the two wants to take the spotlight too much, the other will take umbrage. But Trump was elected, not Musk – for all the power he has. They both have this idea that they are the chosen ones, that they are going to save the world. But, in this vision, only one can remain in the end. » Especially since the attentive listening available to Elon Musk to the next leader of the United States risks attracting the animosity of a number of advisors and politicians.
“A mix between “Games of Thrones” and “House of Cards””
Elon Musk could therefore follow the same destiny as Steve Bannon, figure of the American ultra-right. Advisor to Donald Trump during his first term, he ended up being ousted after appearing in the media and daring to publicly contradict the Republican. The information site Vox Media also specified in 2017, after his resignation, that the man had “many internal enemies”, who did not hesitate to jump at the opportunity.
Elon Musk would therefore have every interest in acting with caution, both towards Donald Trump and those who will gravitate around him and could, one day, put the final nail in his coffin. Because even if he is the richest man in the world, with more than 300 billion according to the magazine Forbes, he can lose his advantage as quickly as he gained it in Donald Trump’s court. “It’s going to be a mix between Games of Thrones et House of Cards », predicts Jérôme Viala-Gaudefroy. However, as Frank Underwood said in the series, “it only takes ten seconds to crush a man’s ambition”.
