President-elect Donald Trump and billionaire ally Elon Musk may soon find themselves at odds as their egos clash, a CNN analyst predicts.
Ultimately, Trump is likely to emerge victorious in any rivalry between the two, said tech journalist Kara Swisher on “The Chris Wallace Show” over the weekend.
“I’m gonna repeat my assertion about Elon Musk and Donald Trump. One of my favorite movies is ‘Highlander,’ and ‘there can be only one,’” she said, quoting the famous line from the 1986 film. “And that’s gonna be Donald Trump. And I think we’ll see what happens in the wake of that.”
Musk—the founder of SpaceX and Tesla and owner of X—played a role in helping Trump regain the White House with his America PAC and social media platform.
However, Swisher believes their strong personalities will inevitably lead to tension and ultimately strain the friendship.
Musk wields tremendous influence in the tech industry, and many tech CEOs quickly congratulated Trump after his sweeping victory “largely because they’re scared of Elon’s influence and they want to have influence of their own,” Swisher noted.
Wallace referenced a recent Axios story that described Musk as “the most powerful unelected man ever.” Trump, however, “does not like to share the spotlight,” Wallace added.
Swisher suggested that the pair’s potential falling-out will be fueled by their shared desire for attention, rather than political differences. “In comparison of the need for attention between Bannon and Musk, Bannon looks like a kitty cat. Elon needs a lot of attention, and Trump will be irritated by that,” she concluded, referring to conservative Trump ally Steve Bannon.
Trump and Musk’s alliance during the campaign has sparked speculation that the Tesla CEO could play a prominent role in the new administration. Musk recently joined Trump on a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, highlighting the close bond between the two.
The pair were also seen having lunch at Mar-a-Lago on Wednesday, after Trump’s sweeping victory over Vice President Kamala Harris. Musk even appeared in a post-election family photo with Trump and was spotted with the president-elect and his children at the Mar-a-Lago gift shop.
