Donald Trump says talks of ceding US presidency to Elon Musk is ‘hoax’, explains why

“No, he’s not taking the presidency,” Trump told a conservative youth group Turning Point USA.

“You know, they’re on a new kick,” he said. “All the different hoaxes. The new one is that President Trump has ceded the presidency to Elon Musk. No, no, that’s not happening,” Bloomberg quoted Trump as saying.

Also read | Stephen King warns Americans about ‘President Musk’s growing control over Donald Trump

Trump’s statement comes amid growing complaints in the US about Musk’s increased influence in the country’s politics since the Republican presidential candidate was elected for a second term at the White House. The world’s richest man played a crucial role as the Republican-controlled House of Representatives passed legislation on Friday to avert a midnight government shutdown.

However, Trump expressed his admiration for Musk, one of the largest donors to his presidential campaign. “Isn’t it nice to have smart people we can rely on? Don’t we want that? But no, he’s not going to be president, that I can tell you,” Trump said. “And I’m safe. You know why? He can’t be. He wasn’t born in this country. Ha ha ha,” Trump told his audience in Phoenix.

Also read | Elon Musk emerges as power player amid US government shutdown crisis

Elon Musk and Trump

Trump adopted Musk’s idea of cost-cutting and deregulation when he announced the formation of a temporary agency called the Department of Government Efficiency, to be led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. Rather than an official department, it has become a group of small people working from Musk’s SpaceX office in Washington and organized around an account on Musk’s social media platform, X.

Also read | Trump team refutes ‘President Musk’s outsized influence on GOP

Musk’s influence has raised alarm bells in policy-making circles in the US as most of his companies are regulated by the federal government and receive contracts.

During Trump’s presidential campaign, Musk donated $238.5 million, making him the single largest donor in US election history.