Musk v. Trump — A Distraction From What Matters

Sure, Laugh—But Stay Focused. They’re Both Trying to Kill Your Healthcare, Your Human Rights, and Probably You Too

If you’ve been online this week, you noticed the Elon Musk Donald Trump honeymoon is over. Musk called Trump’s budget bill a “disgusting abomination.” Trump hit back by bragging about gutting the EV mandate. Musk replied by accusing Trump of being in the yet unreleased Epstein files. Trump responded by promising to remove Musk’s billions in government contracts. Musk is now openly calling for Trump’s impeachment.

It’s the kind of feud that makes headlines for all the wrong reasons: Donald Trump and Elon Musk, two of the richest, loudest, and most destructive men in America, trading jabs like petulant children. Meanwhile, a looming danger remains that this feud attempts to distract from—a danger we cannot afford to ignore. Let’s Address This.

Elon Musk and Donald Trump. Credit: Allison Robbert/AFP/Getty Images

Note the Distraction—Because It Is Working

A new poll shows just how effective this distraction has become. Data For Progress reports:

We asked over 1200 survey respondents for the news story they've heard about the most in the past week Only 44 respondents mentioned the GOP budget bill. Of those, only 14 mentioned cuts to social programs like Medicaid.

Meanwhile, 102 people had heard of Musk leaving the administration. When nearly 7X the number of Americans have heard about Musk leaving, as have heard about the likelihood of millions of people losing their healthcare and their lives, we have a problem.

And that’s why the Trump-Musk feud is so effective as a distraction. Because it lets both men play-act opposition while continuing to collaborate behind the scenes on a shared project: robbing working Americans of their healthcare, civil rights, economic security, and dignity. Meanwhile, Trump’s budget bill isn’t just bad—it’s murderous. According to a Yale-led study, this bill will strip healthcare from tens of millions of Americans, resulting in at least 51,000 preventable deaths per year. The non-partisan CBO likewise confirms this bill will kick 11 million Americans off their health insurance. And guess who benefits from those cuts?

That’s right. The same billionaires who fund the politicians, control the industries, dodge the taxes, and jack up the drug prices. Musk. Trump. Bezos. The same small circle of powerful men who call it “freedom” when they strip you of your right to survive.

Let me put it more bluntly: This bill, if passed, will kill more Americans annually than any single terrorist attack on American soil in history—by a factor of nearly 20. And instead of sounding the alarm, our media is breathlessly covering a fake feud between two oligarchs who couldn’t care less whether you live or die. I’m not saying don’t laugh at their expense. By all means, enjoy the memes. Satirize away. There’s catharsis in mockery, especially when it’s aimed at men who treat our democracy like a board game and working people like disposable playing pieces. But while you’re chuckling, do not lose focus.

This bill is not about fiscal responsibility. It’s about cruelty. It’s about consolidating power in the hands of the ultra-rich—like Trump and Musk—while the rest of us are left gasping for air, drowning in medical debt, or dying for lack of an inhaler. Remember, Musk was as much a part of creating this bill as is Trump. Musk used his hundreds of billions to threaten Republicans to vote exactly as Trump wanted, or else. And Republicans, fickle as they are, capitulated to Musk’s threats. Don’t fall for his faux opposition now.

Musk’s “Resistance” Is a Lie

Since going “full Trump,” Musk’s net worth has increased by over $200 billion. That’s not a typo. It’s a reminder that even when billionaires "fight," they still come out richer—because the system is designed that way.

Remember when Musk’s companies were under multiple federal investigations for labor violations, environmental damage, securities fraud, and discriminatory practices? Well, those investigations have all magically disappeared. To those of us who’ve practiced law and studied power, it reeks of exactly the kind of backroom dealing that Trump perfected in his first term.

Musk has also performed a Nazi Sieg Heil salute—twice—and has never apologized, retracted, or even acknowledged it. Instead, he doubled down. And when mainstream media outlets looked the other way, he took that as validation. This is the man who now wants you to believe he’s standing up to Trump? Forgive me if I don’t throw him a parade. In short, I see zero valid reason to believe Musk is sincere in his opposition to Trump. And frankly, even if we could somehow ‘know’ he is sincere in his opposition, it makes no difference. The damage he’s caused is done. This includes the at least 300,000 who have died globally because Musk gutted USAID. And this budget bill that he now calls an “abomination” will only advance that carnage. It is truly irrelevant what he feels now—he’s destructive actions have already told us who he is.

Billionaires Back Each Other—Always

The bottom line is this. History teaches us that billionaires support billionaires—no matter how much they pretend to bicker. Whether it’s Trump’s tax cuts for the ultra-wealthy, Musk’s billions in federal subsidies, or the corporate media’s refusal to challenge them, it’s all part of the same game: keep the working class distracted, divided, and disempowered.

So yes, laugh at their feud. Make the jokes. Post the memes. But while you’re doing all that, be sure to contact your Senator. Tell them to vote no on this bill. Tell them that Americans deserve healthcare. That billionaires don’t deserve more tax cuts, rather they deserve tax hikes. That we deserve justice. That we will not be distracted by petty billionaire theatrics while our rights are being stolen in broad daylight.

And if you value this kind of unfiltered, truth-driven analysis—please consider supporting my work. I write to inform, to expose, and to fight back. But I can’t do it without your help. Subscribe, share, and help us keep the spotlight where it belongs: not on the clowns fighting in the center ring, but on activating every person in this country to continue to fight for our human rights.

Let’s stay focused. Let’s stop this bill. And let’s build a country where healthcare is a human right—not a bargaining chip between billionaires.