Elon Musk's Trump tiff could be an opportunity for Democrats

To use a phrase favored by his SpaceX engineers: Elon Musk's volatile friendship with President Donald Trump experienced a "rapid unscheduled disassembly," as the two titans of politics and industry clashed with increasing ferocity last week over everything from electoral prowess to allegations of pedophilia. Although their schism may seem inevitable in hindsight, the rift has snowballed into more than just a doomed friendship. It is looming as the sort of seismic shakeup that could alter the course of contemporary politics.

With Republicans largely waiting for the dust to settle before assessing how best to move forward, Democrats have been watching the Trump-Musk falling-out with a strategic eye. Some party figures have begun cautiously calling for Democrats to make overtures to Musk, given his political largesse, while others are strongly warning against inviting the self-proclaimed "Dark MAGA" billionaire into their liberal fold.

Democrats have 'values that he agrees with'

While Musk has a "unique capability" for "wildly distorting" a group's politics, politics is ultimately a "zero-sum game," said Liam Kerr, cofounder of last week's centrist WelcomeFest rally, at Politico. Any overture that brings Musk "more toward Democrats hurts Republicans." To that end, had it been former President Joe Biden whose high-profile political partnership had imploded in full public view, Trump would have "hugged" Biden's theoretical Musk-equivalent the "next day," said Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) on X, citing the Democrats' effort to keep Robert F. Kennedy Jr., at a distance, only for Trump to successfully invite him into the MAGA movement.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

"We can be the party of sanctimonious lectures," said Khanna, "or the party of FDR that knows how to win & build a progressive majority." Party figures can "convince him that the Democratic Party has more of the values that he agrees with," the lawmaker said at Politico, citing Musk's shared "commitment" to science and clean technology.

"I think we call that a gettable voter," said commentator Bill Maher on his HBO talk show "Real Time," highlighting Musk's fight with Trump and pointed criticism of Trump's "big, beautiful bill." Democrats "do have to win them back," said Maher of figures like Musk and fellow right-wing influencer Joe Rogan. "The good news is you can."

"The left should focus on why it lost Elon," said former Trump administration Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci on X, "rather than demonizing him." Democrats should be "trying to woo him back," Scaramucci added on his "The Rest is Politics: US" podcast. By moving to the center, Democrats can bring Musk "back into the fold as a prodigal son."

Musk, the 'enemy of liberal democracy'

Khanna's claims notwithstanding, a "brief review of Musk's entrepreneurial track record" reveals a "total lack of the 'values' that Democrats purport to espouse," said columnist Belén Fernández at Al Jazeera. For Democrats espousing the virtues of courting Musk, "ideology matters little when you're just in the business of buying power."

While it may be "hard to resist the temptation" of reaching out to Musk amid his ongoing rift with Trump, Democrats should bear in mind that Musk is a "thoroughgoing enemy of liberal democracy, a backer and promoter of authoritarian parties ranging from Trump's GOP to Germany's AfD," said conservative commentator William Kristol at The Bulwark. While it may be "enjoyable (if not productive)" for Democrats to make hay of the Trump-Musk discord, the electoral reality is that Musk will be no help with "swing voters in marginal districts or competitive states."

By welcoming Musk, Democrats would be "shooing more working-class voters away from the party," said Progressive Caucus chair Greg Casar (D-Texas) at Axios. Calling out "billionaire villains" like Musk "works for us, and we should keep on doing what works."

Broadly, there's "nothing wrong" with an opposition party seeking to maximize its leverage against the president, said Eoin Higgins at MSNBC. But given the "key role" the Tesla CEO has played in the Trump administration's assault on governmental institutions, "outright mending fences with Musk would be a mistake." When it comes to damaging the Trump administration, Democrats "don't even need to do anything" to contribute to Musk and Trump's self-inflicted wounds, "they can just sit back and watch."