Billionaire Elon Musk is not one to shy away from discussing politics or ideology on X, formerly Twitter — the social media platform he bought for $44 billion in 2022.
While attending a wedding in person in 2022, Musk was tasked with answering for his political beliefs.
What Happened: Musk has publicly admitted that he considers himself an Independent and has voted for both Republican and Democrat candidates in the past.
While attending a wedding for Endeavor Group Holdings (NYSE:EDR) CEO Ari Emanuel in May 2022, Musk was asked about comments he made about leaning more Republican in recent months.
The wedding in France was attended by many Hollywood stars, including comedian Larry David, well known as the man behind hit shows like “Curb Your Enthusiasm” and “Seinfeld.”
Walter Isaacson, who released a biography on Musk, recalls the events of the wedding that saw David approach Musk in the recently released book.
“Do you just want to murder kids in schools?” David asked Musk at the wedding, as reported by the New York Post.
Isaacson said of the events that David “seemed to be fuming.” The comedian was seated at a table with Musk and also officiated the wedding for the talent agent.
The murder of kids in question was the mass school shooting that took place in Uvalde, Texas several days before the wedding.
Musk was reportedly annoyed with the comments and responded back to David.
“No, no. I’m anti-kid murder,” Musk said.
David then brought in the political talk.
“Then how could you vote Republican?” David asked Musk.
In the book, Isaacson said David confirmed the events and shared more details of why he attacked Musk over his voting habits.
“His tweets about voting Republican because Democrats were the party of division and hate were sticking in my craw,” David told Isaacson. “Even if Uvalde never happened, I probably would have brought it up, because I was angry and offended.”
Related Link: Musk Calls For Younger Presidents: 'You Don't Want To Be Too Far From The Average Age Of The Population'
Why It’s Important: School shootings often lead to discussions on gun control, a hot-button topic among friends, family members and neighbors.
Interestingly enough, Musk took to Twitter after the school shooting and shared his thoughts on gun control.
“What is a reasonable way to make it harder for people with homicidal impulses to obtain body count maximizing weapons?” Musk tweeted.
Among the suggestions from Musk was an age requirement of 21 years of age for people to purchase semi-automatic rifles, along with having no criminal history.
Musk also floated the idea that gun owners should be required to purchase insurance for the weapons they own.
“Maybe just require homicide insurance for a gun purchase? Minimum car insurance, which is basically homicide insurance, is required for car ownership.”
Musk has often voted for Democrats, including Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden. In recent years, Musk has favored Republicans and accused the Democratic party of being “infected with woke mind virus.”
The billionaire was not a fan of how Democrat leaders handled the COVID-19 pandemic, which included lockdown measures in certain areas that he did not agree with and hurt production for Tesla Inc.
Musk also cited politics as one of the reasons he left the state of California and moved Tesla’s headquarters to Texas.
“California is gerrymandered to ensure Democratic outcome.”
Musk has a history with Donald Trump and welcomed the former president back on Twitter, a social media platform he was banned from before the billionaire’s acquisition.
For the 2024 election, Musk has made positive comments and shown signs of support for Republican candidates including Ron DeSantis, Vivek Ramaswamy and Sen.Tim Scott (R-S.C.).
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