Donald Trump had been speaking for exactly 12 minutes when the audience at the Republican campaign headquarters in Palm Beach, Florida, spoke up. “Elon! Elon! From the pulpit, Trump asked the audience: “Who?” “Elon!” they shouted in response. The former North American president, who is preparing to return to the White House, fulfilled them. “Let me tell you, we have a new star. A star was born. Elon.”

It was not even necessary to say the nickname to understand that the then Republican candidate (who has not yet been officially declared the winner) was referring to Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, founder of the rocket company SpaceX and declared supporter of Trump. . “He’s a fantastic guy. We were sitting together tonight,” said the presidential candidate at a time when a photo of the two of them sitting at the table on Tuesday night was already circulating on social media while the election results were being counted.

????????????????Is the future going to be like this???? ??????????????? pic.twitter.com/x56cqb6oT5

– Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 6, 2024

In his victory speech, the future president of the United States dedicated many minutes to what he considers “a special guy,” “a supergenius.” “We have to protect our super geniuses, we don’t have that many,” concluded Donald Trump.

Elon Musk, 53, has been one of Trump’s main supporters and supporter of the MAGA movement (acronym for Make America Great Again — Making America Great Again, in free translation). The American tycoon of South African origin, CEO of Tesla and the richest man in the world, has actively participated in Donald Trump’s campaign, having even created a political action committee, America Pac, to promote actions in support of the Republican candidacy. .

Among other initiatives, Musk launched on October 19 a raffle for checks worth one million dollars (920,000 euros) a day until the election date to anyone who supported a petition in defense of freedom of expression and the right to arms. . The race was open to registered voters in seven key states: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. The goal was to entice undecided voters to register and vote for Donald Trump.

But on October 28, Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, a Democrat, sued Musk in an attempt to block the contest in Pennsylvania, alleging that the payments amounted to an “illegal lottery with poorly defined rules.” This Monday, a Pennsylvania judge would end up authorizing Elon Musk’s offer of one million dollars to voters.

“Tonight, the American people gave Trump a clear mandate for change,” Musk wrote Tuesday. “The future is going to be fantastic,” reads another publication with a photograph of a space rocket launch.

Elon Musk: “I am ready to serve the United States if the opportunity arises”

It is not clear what role Elon Musk can play in Donald Trump’s victory, but on the social network X (formerly Twitter), the businessman shared a tweet from a publication where the caption of the photograph with Trump and Joe Rogan says: “USA CEO, CMO, CTO” (acronyms for Chief Executive Officer, Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Technology Officer).

In September, the Wall Street Journal reported that Trump had promised Musk a place in government if he won the election. At the time, Musk reacted to X by saying he was “looking forward to serving the United States if the opportunity arises.” “I don’t need a salary, nor a title, nor recognition,” he wrote.

Now, the same newspaper says Musk should be given “a role in auditing federal spending and regulations in a Trump administration through a Department of Government Efficiency” and that the Tesla CEO “will likely have a seat in the table where many of these decisions will be made.” are made, giving you the opportunity to adapt the policy to your own financial interests.”

In an article published this Wednesday, the newspaper claims that Elon Musk should benefit greatly from Trump’s victory, since Musk’s companies, including Tesla and SpaceX, are regulated by several federal agencies. The newspaper warns of possible conflicts of interest if Musk becomes actively involved in a commission on public spending. The WSJ recalls that Musk’s companies depend on government decisions, such as “which rocket to use for a space launch, how many satellites to allow in low Earth orbit, whether driverless cars can travel on highways,” it reads.

Despite the reports in the North American press and Musk’s statements, last week, a few days before the November 1 elections, Musk wrote in X: “To be clear, I never asked Donald Trump for any favors, nor did he offer it to me. none.”