The Sound Of Influence: Musk’s Transparent Advocacy Reverberates Around the World

We do not know if Elon Musk intended to be the most powerful person on the planet when he bought Twitter for $44 billion.

However, after completing the acquisition on October 27, 2022 - on free-speech grounds (and after being forced into the deal by the former leaders of Twitter through a court challenge) - Musk has transformed not only the platform but geopolitics as well. Though one of the most popular figures on X, with over 210 million followers, Musk follows fewer than a thousand people - but they are some of the most influential players in the world.

Posting messages to communicate a thought is one thing; using his platform for advocacy is entirely different. The Left has revered billionaire George Soros and his son for pushing ultra-liberal initiatives globally; now Conservative voices have an able competitor to Soros in Musk - with a megaphone that is multiple times as impactful and transparent.

On Sunday, Musk ran a pinned X poll on his account, ensuring that anyone who clicked on his name would see it at the top of his posts: "America should liberate the people of Britain from their tyrannical government (Y/N)."

The private poll has no bearing on diplomatic relations between the two countries. However, Musk's intense campaign during the last two weeks forced British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to address the issue during a press conference. "When the poison of the far-right leads to serious threats to Jess Phillips and others, then in my book, a line has been crossed."

Starmer, who served as the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) from 2008 to 2013, and Jesse Phillips, a Member of Parliament (MP) for Birmingham Yardley, have been in the news for their decisions regarding inquiries into child sexual exploitation. For years, under both conservative and liberal governments, the UK has embraced immigrants from third-world countries and, to be culturally tolerant has gone out of its way to protect those immigrant communities from discrimination.

Musk has suggested that political correctness or fear of being accused of racism might have influenced the lack of prosecutions. However, this is highly speculative and not substantiated by evidence from official inquiries or reports. Musk alleges that Starmer may have deliberately overlooked these issues to secure political support from specific voter demographics, suggesting a trade-off between justice for victims and political gain. This accusation is part of Musk's broader critique of Starmer's integrity and leadership.

The X poll received 600,000 votes, with 71% voting yes and 29% voting no, but over 42 million people viewed the poll. The low participation rate demonstrates that while many American conservatives support Musk and credit him with helping Trump defeat Harris in the 2024 election, they believe that it is not Americans' place to meddle in the affairs of a foreign government.

Musk has already weighed in on the elections in Germany, as we wrote in a recent editorial when he openly advocated for the ultra-conservative AfD to win next month's elections. German chancellor Olaf Scholz, whose party is in deep trouble electorally, expressed his displeasure, responding on January 4: "Germany is a strong, stable democracy. Here, the will of the citizens is what counts, not the erratic statements of a billionaire from the USA." But a close friend and ally of Scholz, French President Macron, was far more critical of Musk's advocacy, calling it election interference: "Ten years ago, who could have imagined it if we had been told that the owner of one of the largest social networks in the world would support a new international reactionary movement and intervene directly in elections, including in Germany?"

Unlike George Soros and his son, who primarily operate secretive networks to fund the elections of civic leaders from local governments and upward to push for their storied liberal causes, Musk is an oversized presence on the global stage whose approval matters. For example, Musk is considered to be close to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, even posting pictures of him having dinner with her on a recent visit to Rome. His friendship resulted in Meloni getting an invitation to visit Mar-a-Lago, President-elect Trump's Florida estate, where Musk has been reportedly camped out since Election Day. Addressing the gathering, Trump acknowledged her presence: "This is very exciting. I'm here with a fantastic woman, the prime minister of Italy. She's really taken Europe by storm." In a fractured geopolitical world where many European leaders detest the return of President-elect Trump, Meloni's friendship with Musk has eased the bilateral relations between Italy and the United States.

Conversely, Musk's active posting on X to drive debate poses a substantial danger to those closely associated with him. Trump has appointed Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, another billionaire, as co-leaders of DOGE, a government efficiency watchdog with limited authority from Congress or the executive branch.

Initially, Musk posted on X that nearly $500 billion of waste, fraud, and abuse in government expenditures could be saved, reducing federal deficits. His posts got impressive reach; especially among MAGA supporters, who want to bring discipline to American governance. However, even many congressional Republicans who are strong Trump supporters see that DOGE may not live up to expectations, harming Trump as someone who over promised and under delivered.

Senator Ted Cruz: "While I appreciate the intent behind DOGE, the reality is that without a majority in Congress willing to enact these reforms, Musk and Ramaswamy might as well be shouting into the void. Washington's entrenched interests will not easily yield."

Representative Jim Jordan: "You can't just cut spending with a magic wand. Every cut has political consequences, and there are too many in Congress who are more interested in keeping their seats than in cutting the fat. I'm skeptical that DOGE will make a dent."

Governor Ron DeSantis: "DOGE sounds great on paper, but implementing real change? That's a different story. The bureaucracy will fight back, and without a fundamental shift in how Congress operates, I see more talk than action."

Trump takes office in two weeks and has a packed MAGA agenda to execute. Musk must continue playing a crucial role in the success of that agenda. Time will tell if the technocrat has the discipline to recognize the weight of his megaphone and whether he will help or hurt Trump.