The tech billionaire and the world’s wealthiest man, Elon Musk, sat down on Monday August 12 for a free-flowing interview on Musk’s X platform with Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump. Trump’s campaign billed the talk three months before the US presidential election as the “interview of the century.”
The “live conversation” with Trump was “unscripted with no limits on the subject matter”.
Hours before the interview, Trump posted a flurry of videos promoting his campaign and attacking US Vice President and Democratic candidate Kamala Harris.
Trump’s campaign posted a picture of the former president wearing a microphone while waiting for the interview to begin, with the caption “Breaking the internet.” Musk apologized for the late start and aimed to have an open conversation with Trump rather than a typical adversarial news interview. The interview was delayed by over 40 minutes, but nearly a million people tuned in, with Trump and Musk visible as hosts and speakers, respectively.
It will be recalled that Trump was banned from X (then known as Twitter) in 2021 by the platform’s previous management. Since Musk reinstated him in 2022, he has only shared a single post—a photo of his mugshot following his arrest in Georgia last year.
Technical issues affected the interview, with X users reporting that they could not access a link to the conversation shared by Trump.
In the interview, Trump and Musk discussed various topics, including climate change, education, foreign relations, and the US’s relationship with Russia, China, North Korea but beginning with domestic affairs.
Education
Trump vowed to close the Department of Education and pass responsibility for education back to states. At the same time, Musk called on Trump to set up a “government efficiency commission” to ensure better taxpayer spending.
Russia-Ukraine War
Trump issued a grim pronouncement on Ukraine’s prospects against Russia, stating that Russia managed to defeat Nazi Germany. At the same time, Ukraine has been reduced to using young men and significantly older men to fight. He harshly criticized President Joe Biden for making stupid statements, such as declaring that Ukraine “can be a NATO country.”
Musk and Trump also discussed other foreign relations, with Musk insisting that the US must have an “intimidating” president to deter “evil dictators” around the world.
Attempted Assassination
On his assassination attempt, Trump praised the Secret Service agents who rushed on stage to protect him after his assassination attempt but refrained from openly criticizing their actions during the rally.
Israel-Palestinian Conflict
Regarding Harris and the Israel-Palestinian conflict, Trump said,
“She’s going to be worse than him,” referring to Biden. “If you’re a person who is very pro-Israel and you vote for her, you ought to have your head examined.”
Harris has attempted to court the Democratic Party’s pro-Israel establishment wing and its pro-Palestine progressive wing with mixed results. When one of her rallies was interrupted by pro-Palestine protesters last week, Harris shushed the demonstrators, telling them, “I am speaking now.”
Musk’s Trump Endorsement
Towards the end of the interview, Musk explained why he has endorsed Trump.
”I’ve not been political before…and it’s not like I’m some dyed-in-the-wool long-term Republican,” he said, adding that the upcoming election marks a “critical juncture for the country.”
“A lot of people thought the Biden administration would be a moderate administration, but it’s not. I think we’ll see an even further left administration with Kamala,” he continued. “We want to have a prosperous future. You are the path to prosperity, and Kamala is the opposite,” he told Trump.
“That endorsement meant a lot to me,” Trump replied.
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