Billionaire Elon Musk, who has been ramping up criticism of US President Joe Biden, has donated to a political group working to elect rival presidential candidate Donald Trump, Bloomberg reported on Friday, citing sources.
The report did not indicate how much Musk donated but added it was “a sizeable amount” given to a group called America PAC.
Bloomberg reported that the PAC — a group that can receive unlimited contributions for political activity — is next required to disclose its list of donors on July 15.
In March, Trump, a former US president who is expected to be formally nominated as the Republican Party's candidate for the November 5 election, met Musk and other wealthy donors.
In response to reports of the meeting, South African-born Musk posted on X: “Just to be super clear, I am not donating money to either candidate for US president.” In May, he also denied media reports that there had been talks over a potential advisory role for him in any Trump presidency.
Musk, the world's richest person who runs electric car maker Tesla, rocket maker SpaceX, social media company X and other companies, did not respond to Reuters' request for comments.
Biden campaign spokesperson James Singer said Musk knows Trump is “a sucker who will sell America out, cutting his taxes while raising taxes on the middle class by $2,500 (R45,213)”.
“Joe Biden has been standing up to people such as Elon and fighting for the middle class his entire career — and it’s why he’ll win in November,” Singer said.
Musk in recent years has more fully embraced the Republican Party, which has weighed on the reputation and sales of Tesla, the biggest source of his wealth.
Trump last month reiterated his pledge to immediately abandon the Biden administration's “mandate” to support the electric vehicle industry. He added: “I'm a big fan of electric cars. I'm a fan of Elon.”
“He does an incredible job with Tesla.”
Musk said they had “some conversations” and Trump is a “huge fan of the cybertrucks”, referring to Tesla's electric pickup.
While he has publicly criticised Biden's policies on immigration and electric vehicles and his age, Musk has not made any formal endorsement in November's contest and Trump has said he did not know if he has Musk's support.
He has also endorsed antisemitic comments on X, though Musk has denied being antisemitic.
Musk's views have hurt his standing among some consumers, according to a CivicScience survey shown exclusively to Reuters.
Tesla's Musk donates to group working to elect Trump: Bloomberg
Image: Marc Piasecki/Getty Images
Billionaire Elon Musk, who has been ramping up criticism of US President Joe Biden, has donated to a political group working to elect rival presidential candidate Donald Trump, Bloomberg reported on Friday, citing sources.
The report did not indicate how much Musk donated but added it was “a sizeable amount” given to a group called America PAC.
Bloomberg reported that the PAC — a group that can receive unlimited contributions for political activity — is next required to disclose its list of donors on July 15.
In March, Trump, a former US president who is expected to be formally nominated as the Republican Party's candidate for the November 5 election, met Musk and other wealthy donors.
In response to reports of the meeting, South African-born Musk posted on X: “Just to be super clear, I am not donating money to either candidate for US president.” In May, he also denied media reports that there had been talks over a potential advisory role for him in any Trump presidency.
Musk, the world's richest person who runs electric car maker Tesla, rocket maker SpaceX, social media company X and other companies, did not respond to Reuters' request for comments.
Biden campaign spokesperson James Singer said Musk knows Trump is “a sucker who will sell America out, cutting his taxes while raising taxes on the middle class by $2,500 (R45,213)”.
“Joe Biden has been standing up to people such as Elon and fighting for the middle class his entire career — and it’s why he’ll win in November,” Singer said.
Musk in recent years has more fully embraced the Republican Party, which has weighed on the reputation and sales of Tesla, the biggest source of his wealth.
Trump last month reiterated his pledge to immediately abandon the Biden administration's “mandate” to support the electric vehicle industry. He added: “I'm a big fan of electric cars. I'm a fan of Elon.”
“He does an incredible job with Tesla.”
Musk said they had “some conversations” and Trump is a “huge fan of the cybertrucks”, referring to Tesla's electric pickup.
While he has publicly criticised Biden's policies on immigration and electric vehicles and his age, Musk has not made any formal endorsement in November's contest and Trump has said he did not know if he has Musk's support.
He has also endorsed antisemitic comments on X, though Musk has denied being antisemitic.
Musk's views have hurt his standing among some consumers, according to a CivicScience survey shown exclusively to Reuters.
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