So far, 2024 is not turning out to be a good year for Democrats.
Between Joe Biden and Kamala Harris’ abysmal approval ratings, the failure of any other Republican to overtake the juggernaut that is Donald Trump, Monday’s unanimous Supreme Court decision in Trump’s favor, and Super Tuesday results, the upcoming election is looking worse and worse for Democrats.
And now, according to The New York Times, the all-but-certain Republican nominee has met with maverick billionaire turned social media mogul, Elon Musk.
According to the Times, unnamed sources said Trump met with Musk and a few other Republican donors in Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday. The reason, at least according to the Times, was Trump’s attempts to “shore up his finances.”
While nothing has been confirmed yet concerning whether Musk will put his vast fortune behind Trump in the 2024 election, the fact that they’re even talking is huge.
The Times notes that, historically, Musk has donated to both Democratic and Republican candidates, but in recent years, especially since buying Twitter and renaming it X, Musk has leaned increasingly to the right.
Musk reinstated Trump’s account on the social media platform in 2022, and offered a new home for Tucker Carlson after he parted ways with Fox News last year.
Musk publicly and personally intervened in June when other X employees tried to limit the distribution of Matt Walsh’s “What Is a Woman?” documentary. Musk even retweeted the documentary to his 175 million followers, writing that “every parent should watch this”.
Every parent should watch this https://t.co/pIp6UP6vq8
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 2, 2023
Would Elon Musk’s support help Trump?
Moreover, as The Times noted, Musk has publicly expressed criticism of Biden, especially with regards to the immigration crisis, often tweeting several times a day about the devastating impact of Biden’s de facto open border (though The Times characterizes Musk’s concerns as “alarmist”).
America will fall if it tries to absorb the world. That is why I am banging the drum so much about this issue. https://t.co/9MrkJghzx9
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 5, 2024
Now, pace the Times, despite the exorbitant amount of unfair litigation against Trump, is not exactly desperate, but the paper is right to note that Biden’s campaign is overall in a much better financial situation than Trump’s, both when it comes to money saved and fundraising opportunities.
As NBC News pointed out in a Feb. 1 report, Trump’s campaign has currently spent more than it raised, while Biden’s has much more in the way of financial reserves.
So considering Trump’s enormous legal expenses thanks to partisan prosecutors and the massive fine imposed by a New York judge, it would not be unfair to say a cash infusion from Musk’s financial assistance would be welcome.
That said, despite the state of Trump’s finances as compared to Biden’s, even if we just look at the events of the past few days, Trump is already in a strong position to win the Republican nomination, and, according to polls, the presidency.
Hence, a potential Trump-Musk alliance in this election cycle would be massive — potentially game-changing, as the final, figurative nail in the coffin of Biden’s somnambulant campaign.
Partnering with one of the richest men in the world, who owns one of the largest and most influential social media platforms in the world, would be a huge boost to Trump’s campaign.
Will Musk ultimately lend his support to Trump?
That’s hard to say at this point — Trump reportedly wants to meet with Musk one-on-one, but as yet it doesn’t seem to have taken place.
Still, that they’ve met together at all is a significant development.
It will be interesting to see how this potential alliance plays out, in this most unusual of election cycles.
