Elon Musk Takes Aim at Wealthy Democratic Donors and Biden’s Tax Plans

Elon Musk, the renowned tech magnate and one of the richest individuals globally, took a jab at wealthy Democratic donors and President Joe Biden’s proposed tax policies in a tweet on Saturday. The exchange began when President Biden tweeted about the need for the super-wealthy to pay their fair share in taxes. Musk, known for his outspoken views on various topics, responded by suggesting that a wealth tax could burden lower-to-middle-income earners.

While expressing agreement with making tax-avoidance schemes illegal, Musk hinted that the Democratic Party’s donors might hinder real action on the matter. His tweet appeared to be a veiled criticism directed at the donors within the Democratic Party.

According to a report from Forbes, billionaire donors collectively spent over $2.3 billion during the 2020 election campaign, with approximately 230 billionaires or their partners contributing to President Biden’s campaign. Musk’s tweet suggested that implementing a wealth tax could disproportionately impact lower-to-middle-income wage earners who cannot escape payroll taxes.

President Biden’s tweet followed a campaign rally in Philadelphia, during which he called for union workers’ support and advocated for additional taxes on billionaires and major corporations. He emphasized the need for the wealthy to pay their fair share while acknowledging their right to accumulate wealth.

Earlier this year, President Biden proposed a minimum tax of around 25% on billionaires. Musk had previously criticized a tax plan that would have resulted in an estimated $10 billion annual tax bill for him.

In a separate response to Biden’s tweet, Musk humorously suggested that the 80-year-old President was not in control of his own social media account and requested that he be given the password to handle his own tweets.

Musk’s opposition to taxing the ultra-wealthy is not new. He has expressed concerns about the potential consequences of such policies and has previously stated that he paid approximately $11 billion in federal taxes in 2021. However, it is worth noting that Tesla, the electric car company led by Musk, reportedly paid zero federal taxes in 2021. Tesla is expected to benefit from economic incentives provided by the Biden administration.

Despite revealing that he voted for President Biden, Musk has been critical of the President since he assumed office. He referred to Biden as a “damp sock puppet” and expressed disappointment at the lack of praise for Tesla.

Musk’s outspoken nature on Twitter has occasionally landed him in trouble with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). As part of an agreement with the SEC following his controversial “funding secured” tweet, Musk’s tweets are now subject to scrutiny by a lawyer.

At the time of publication, Elon Musk had not responded to a request for comment from Insider regarding his recent tweets.