Top billionaire oligarch Elon Musk chooses camp in the capitalist civil war

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As we continue to monitor the developments in the capitalist civil war (which is particularly evident in the US/UK, the motherlands of neoliberalism), we covered the recent pro-Brexit capitalists' stressful attempt to find a suitable Thatcherite zombie that would help them stabilize their political power. It seems that they found a not so reliable solution in the face of Rishi Sunak, for now.

 

On the other side of the Atlantic, it seems that the top billionaire oligarch, Elon Musk, decided to join the alt-right, pro-Trump capitalist faction, for good.

 

The first signs of Musk's connection with the pro-Trump capitalist faction came out for the first time, probably during the US-backed coup against Evo Morales in Bolivia, back in 2019.

In 2020, Musk responded to an accusation on Twitter (that the US government organized a coup against President Evo Morales so that Musk could obtain Bolivia's lithium), with the shockingly straightforward admission, “We will coup whoever we want! Deal with it.”

 

Many then thought that this was a purposely provoking statement with an overdose of irony, produced by billionaire's eccentric personality and aimed only to highlight the absurdity of the accusation.

 

Yet, considering the long history of the US orchestrated coups in Latin America for the purpose of securing the domination of the US corporations, in most cases, it shouldn't surprise us if the accusation against Musk had a solid basis. Bolivia possesses the largest lithium reserves in the world according to many sources, after all. 

 

Therefore, it wouldn't be crazy to suspect that the coup in Bolivia was a very generous gift by Trump to the oligarch Musk. The alt-right leaders frequently expose themselves as the most zealous supporters of the billionaire class (or at least part of it), despite their 'anti-establishment' facade, after all.

Therefore, naturally, Musk ended up to become one of the key financial supporters of the new Republican alt-right star, Ron DeSantis, for the 2024 presidential election.

 

At this point, it would be interesting to take a look on the other DeSantis' key financial supporter, Ken Griffin, who appears to be the man that strongly promotes him as the 'fresh blood' to replace Trump. 

 

Politico gives a short, yet revealing profile of Griffin :

 

Griffin, the head of Citadel, an investment firm, has been donating to political campaigns for more than 20 years, giving $5,000 and $10,000 increments in those early days to Republicans and Democrats alike when he was living in Chicago. Mayors Richard M. Daley and Rahm Emanuel, both Democrats, were beneficiaries. And in 2008, he raised money for both presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama.  Back then, he was focused more on giving to cultural institutions. A wing of the Art Institute of Chicago is named after him, and a portion of the iconic Lakefront Trail along Lake Michigan was improved with his $16 million donation. He also gave $1 million to the Obama Foundation in 2017. Griffin, who pulled Republican ballots in Illinois, wrote a $500,000 check for Joe Biden’s 2020 inaugural committee, but his donations have otherwise shifted rightward in recent years, fueled, he said, by concerns about public safety, schools and politicians’ lack of fiscal discipline. One mantra Griffin threads through his philanthropic and political giving is a focus on “protecting the American dream for future generations.”

 

Griffin, therefore, appears to be one of the most characteristic examples of what we supported concerning the capitalist civil war. As we wrote more than a year ago:

 

We need to understand that this civil war between the capitalist factions does not come out of any substantially different ideological or political approach. Essentially, it's only a tough bargain. Capitalists just pick sides to negotiate terms and secure their position in the post-capitalist era, which already looks like a kind of 21st century corporate feudalism. 

 

Finally, through a shocking headline, CNBC reveals that "American billionaires spent a record $880 million on the U.S. midterm elections". Ken Griffin is third in the list and Elon Musk is ready to make a dynamic entrance. While it is certain that Trump won't give up his nomination for 2024 so easy, it is also certain that both Musk and Griffin decided to side with the alt-right capitalist faction, with or without him.

 

Well, this is what the 21st century US post-democracy looks like ...