The bromance may fade, but the two megalomaniacs could still reshape the US as long as Trump’s fickle affections hold

Summary

Elon Musk’s $288M donation to Trump’s campaign has secured him influence, including a leadership role in DOGE, which aggressively cuts federal programs.

While their alliance is built on shared disruption and anti-“woke” policies, tensions could rise as Musk’s unchecked power draws criticism.

Musk serves as a useful foil, deflecting attention from Trump, but could become a political liability, fueling concerns over who wields real power.

Pressure from Republicans and critics like Steve Bannon may force a reckoning before the midterms.

  • Boddhisatva@lemmy.world
    61·
    1 day ago

    I think that it will last as long as Musk wants it to. Trump spent years spewing his idiocy across Twitter for years. You can bet he was spewing the most damning stuff in DMs. Musk, having bought Twitter, now has every DM that Trump ever sent on that platform. Trump is not smart. He certainly sent things he shouldn’t have in those DMs. I would be completely shocked if he hadn’t sent DMs that included evidence of criminal activities by him or others. I’d be shocked if he hadn’t sent classified information to other via Twitter DMs. Musk now has all of that dirt on Trump and the resources to use it if he chooses to.

    I find it hard to believe that Musk spent between a quarter and a half a billion dollars to get Trump in office just because he loves Trump “as much as a straight man can love another man.” I think he knew he had leverage on Trump and would be able to use it to do absolutely anything he wants. Now Trump is stuck with Musk because if he tries to dump him, Musk can suddenly find some of those DMs and drop a few tens of millions to make sure Trump gets roasted over it in the media and even in Congress.

      • Boddhisatva@lemmy.world
        2·
        6 hours ago

        That’s not entirely true. I am not a psychiatrist but it has been claimed many times, and it seems clear to me, that Trump has narcissistic personality disorder. That combined with hordes of followers that appear to consider him a living god makes him very, very hard to shame. On the other hand, if someone like Musk were to throw a few 10s of millions or even hundreds of millions into a campaign to turn right wing media against Trump, that horde could be turned against Trump too. If the crowds withered and he were vilified in the media, Trump would quickly crumble.

        The grandiose/oblivious subtype was characterized by exaggerated self-importance, lack of remorse, interpersonal manipulativeness, seething anger, pursuit of interpersonal power, and pursuit of privilege.

        This description of the grandiose/oblivious subtype of narcissism could not be more accurate in describing trump. He also could be in the vulnerable/hypervigilant subtype as that describes him well too.

        Persons in the vulnerable/hypervigilant subtype were characterized by an exquisite sensitivity to what others are saying, a tuning in to every comment that might be critical, a shyness to the point where NPD could be confused with Avoidant PD, a proneness to shame and hurt feelings and a masochistic conviction that they have suffered more than anyone.

        The linked article further states that suicide is not uncommon in people with NPD when they feel shamed or vilified.

        Shame is often at the core of narcissistic individuals, who struggle with an acute sense of having failed in many aspects of their lives. They feel certain that others are thinking badly about them. When “caught” by someone watching them, a sense of painful humiliation may emerge. Seeing and being seen are central to narcissistic patients. They may feel that their secret sense of being “phony” or “fake” is now exposed. Suicide may feel like the only way out, especially after a devastating humiliation.

        Being mocked in the media that he thrives on combined with vanishing MAGA crowds could very well be enough to push Trump over the edge and Musk is perhaps the one person in the world that could make it happen.

    • krashmo@lemmy.world
      4·
      1 day ago

      We already know that Trump has done all of those things. There is no possible information that could be revealed about Trump that would make his cult turn on him. That much is certain.

      • Boddhisatva@lemmy.world
        4·
        1 day ago

        No, you and I know he has done many things. The MAGA cultists only know what their right wing media sources are telling them. Everything from a left or middle news source is all “fake news.” Musk has the financial resources to poison the well they are drinking from by getting Fox, et al to run endless stories about Trump’s corruption and incompetence.

        • nomy@lemmy.zipEnglish
          2·
          21 hours ago

          It’s an interesting posit that’s for sure. On the one hand, he could " stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody" and not lose any voters. On the other hand, Musk is one of the only people with the access and resources to really mount a propaganda campaign against him. It’s a bit of a stand off, we don’t know what conversations have been had with Putin either.

          edit: a word