r/politics • u/Quirkie The Netherlands • Mar 06 '25

Soft Paywall Elon Musk Suddenly Doesn’t Want Credit for Disastrous DOGE Cuts - Musk is warning Republicans to stop blaming DOGE for the cuts.

https://newrepublic.com/post/192415/elon-musk-warns-republicans-doge-job-cuts
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u/Ferelar New Jersey Mar 06 '25

It's also kind of naive to think that the guy who still has hundreds of billions of USD and access to a vast amount of power and information really cares. In fact, his money could disappear tomorrow and he'd still be in an incredibly powerful (and incredibly undeserved) position.

I think people are hoping that this will all self implode economically, politically, etc- which will take the pressure off of us everyday folks and let us continue engaging in some serious bystander syndrome "This is so crazy, someone should do something to stop him!" type stuff, when in reality, this tick is dug in, and only immediate drastic action will remove him. We need to organize. These malfeasants aren't going to just disappear, get bored, or get overruled by some higher power.

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u/GiraffesAndGin Mar 06 '25

It's also kind of naive to think that the guy who still has hundreds of billions of USD

He doesn't have hundreds of billions of USD. He isn't liquid. That's why buying Twitter became such a fiasco. He bragged about buying it at a certain price in cash, Twitter called his bluff, and Musk couldn't come up with the cash. He was trying to back out for months.

His money could disappear tomorrow and he would cease to exist in most everyone's eyes. The money is what gives him influence and prestige. Without it, he's just some drugged up right-winger without even a soap box to stand on. He's not a genius. He's not even modestly intelligent. He is the most textbook definition of a confidence man I've ever seen.

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u/AQKhan786 Mar 06 '25

He is the most textbook definition of a confidence man I've ever seen.

I take it you’ve not heard of one Donald John Trump?

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u/GiraffesAndGin Mar 06 '25

Ha, fair point. I guess I lean into Musk being a better example because he has become the richest man in the world while doing it, and I would even argue he's basically welding the power of the president as well. He has conned the con man.

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u/George_the_poinsetta Mar 07 '25

Or he has been conned by Peter Thiel to take the fall for the oligarchy..

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u/xiril Mar 07 '25

Yeah everyone is looking at the puppets and not the puppeteer.

Russia doesn't really have much to do with this

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u/TheCleverestIdiot Australia Mar 07 '25

Honestly, people think of Thiel as way more intelligent than he is. If you look at his history, he's really more of an example of how easy it is for rich people to bounce back even if they make every wrong move. And he made a lot of them.

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u/AQKhan786 29d ago edited 29d ago

That is a basic mistake made by just about everyone, equating wealth with intellect. If that was true, why weren’t the smartest people throughout history also the wealthiest?

Yes, intelligence is necessary for sure but a large part of it is luck, timing, and the willingness to take risks.

If you look at how modern day oligarchs made their fortunes, it’s clear that all four ingredients are essential. Most of us have just one or most two of them and thus we aren’t in that elite group.

Conversely, those who do make it to the top, have a false sense of their own intellectual prowess, and minimize or outright dismiss that anything else played a part in their success.

That’s why we have the Thiels and Musks who are truly drunk on the notion of their intellectual superiority.

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u/George_the_poinsetta Mar 07 '25

I wasn't making a statement about Thiel's intellectual superiority. Although I do think he has the advantage of being the biggest psychopath on America's billionaire cul de sac.

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u/TheCleverestIdiot Australia Mar 07 '25

Yeah, I was more trying to debunk the idea of Thiel as this grand puppeteer the guy after you brought up. Thiel is a major player for reasons including what you describe, but he's not the only one.

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u/minxymaggothead Mar 07 '25

Trump's not a confidence man in my humble opinion. He's a con man that uses bully tactics. Bullies are never actually confident, they are floundering babies that lash out to get what they want. What Trump has going for him is the collective and purposeful dumbing down and desperation of the middle and lower classes.

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u/Ekg887 29d ago

The J is for 'Jenius'.

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u/AQKhan786 29d ago

Ah yes, I forgot about that gem, or jem in MAGAtese.

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u/False_Grit 29d ago

The "J" actually stands for "Jackass."

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u/AQKhan786 29d ago

Yes that too. Jackass, jackoff, jealous, jejune, jarring, jaded, joyless, judgmental all apply to him in equal measure.

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u/Questknight03 Mar 07 '25

This is very true. All of his loans are leveraged against Telsa stock. If Telsa goes down so does he.

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u/Popisoda Mar 07 '25

I dream of a world where nazis cease to exist

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u/subLimb Mar 07 '25

I really wish they had let him out of that deal

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u/sauerkrauter2000 Mar 07 '25

Is part of a solution to hit his income streams hard so that they lose profitability? Boycotts of Tesla, X, Starlink, etc? Obviously he has other income streams but it’s probably a key action to take while there is still time and corporate monopoly of every aspect of life isn’t yet in effect (this is the tech oligarch dream & is where they are headed).

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u/P3tt3rh Mar 07 '25

Hahaha 😂🫠

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u/gypsymegan06 29d ago

He also acts like 4 raccoons and a closeted 14 yo boy in a cheap, knock off human skin suit.

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u/burlycabin Washington Mar 06 '25

In fact, his money could disappear tomorrow and he'd still be in an incredibly powerful (and incredibly undeserved) position.

This isn't true. Musk is only influential because of his money at this point. If he lost it all, the real people in charge wouldn't give him the time of day. His influence is fully bought and contingent upon his continued support.

(That said, he's so fucking wealthy, his money isn't going to disappear)

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u/RabidGuineaPig007 29d ago edited 29d ago

But he's not actually wealthy. He is massively over leveraged. The only reason why he isn't broke already is because his creditors need to keep this Ponzi scheme going.

I don't think people understand wealth. You can own $100B in stock values and not have $17 for a dozen eggs.

What he actually spends on bribes is borrowed on a stock now worth half what it was in November, and has a serious valuation of 8% current value.

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u/burlycabin Washington 29d ago

This is a gross misunderstanding of how Musk's wealth.

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u/identicalBadger Mar 07 '25

No he does own one of the worlds largest megaphones and can change algorithms at a whim to detriment what people see. He can easily sway future elections without spending a dollar. The only difference would be that he’d lack the money to threaten dissenters with well funded opponents in the primaries

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u/paraffin 29d ago

His ownership stake in Twitter is considered part of his net worth. If he no longer had money he wouldn’t own Twitter and would immediately be replaced as its ceo by someone competent.

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u/[deleted] Mar 06 '25

[deleted]

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u/soldforaspaceship Mar 07 '25

I think you're forgetting that Congress does what he wants because he's openly threatened to fund primary challengers to anyone who dissents.

If he doesn't have the money to do that, it's entirely possible his influence will wane.

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u/Hurtzdonut13 Mar 07 '25

I think it's clear that Elon is extremely thin skinned and very much cares. I mean, he fired the twitter guys that managed the algo and had them crank it where his tweets would always appear for everyone and always show up. He fakes being good at things and gets extremely bent out of shape when exposed that he's a fraud. He lashes out at anyone that doesn't bow to him and declare him a genius.

The problem is that his extreme wealth means he gets to inflict his malignant narcissism on everyone else and there are no consequences for him for his actions no matter how vile.

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u/No-Highway-4833 Mar 06 '25

What would organizing look like? I mean aside from calling state reps/doing protests, what can we do that’s actually going to make a concrete difference? It feels like democratic leadership holed themselves up and we’re just left to fend for ourselves

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u/Bram560 Mar 06 '25

In another year you guys are going to be into another election cycle. Vote every fucking GOP asshole you can out of office. In the meantime, get you Democrats to smarten up. People don't care as much about LBTQ+ shit as they do about the cost of eggs and housing. Get them to campaign on issues that people will actually vote for.

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u/likeaffox Mar 06 '25

Run for election. Get involved in elections in some capacity. We just had an election, so there's not much to do but plan for the midterms.
Give money to causes you think will fight back.

Otherwise, you're right - calling/mailing and seeing reps is important, and organizing through protests is the other.

Don't get exhausted; take it slow. this is a marathon, not a sprint.

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u/Mediocre_Truth_6115 Mar 07 '25 edited Mar 07 '25

Your "This is so crazy," quote made me lol. It's funny because it's true, and in my head I kinda heard that generic Hollywood panic voice, you know?

Anyway, it's important to laugh and acknowledge the absurdity despite the dire situation and everything that's at stake.

I keep seeing people saying, "This is the worst fucking timeline," and... I don't know. It's bewildering. You can take away my healthcare, my right to marry, my right to my religion, but dammit I will laugh in your face. You won't break me. You won't break us.

We do need to organize though. ASAP.

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u/Scared_Internal7152 Mar 07 '25

You are right. People need to stop thinking what they wish for will come true. Dude is in deep and losses like that won’t affect what he’s doing.

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u/Successful_Sign_6991 Mar 07 '25

He does care. He wants to be the worlds first trillionaire and to rule the world or some shit. Theres a reason hes interfering in elections in EU and Canada.

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u/KillingLegacy Mar 07 '25

Insinuating assassination probably isn’t the way to go.

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u/Ferelar New Jersey Mar 07 '25

'Assassination', hmm, didn't see that one in my comment. Ahh but yeah you know what, you're totally right, I'll stick to just posting on reddit while my constitution is shredded. That'll learn 'em.

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u/MaceWindude01 Mar 06 '25

What???? It is NOT naive. He ABSOLUTELY fucking cares, and he cares A LOT. You could be further from the truth even if you tried.