Could the interviews get any weirder?
Things started rocky as Trump and Musk spoke for almost two hours on Aug. 12 after dealing with some technical issues that stopped X users from joining. As users posted screenshots of their technical problems, Musk blamed the issue on a “massive DDOS,” or denial-of-service attack, that must’ve targeted the platform. “As this massive attack illustrates, there’s a lot of opposition to people just hearing what President Trump has to say,” Musk said to listeners.
Once things took off, the two conservatives touched on an array of topics about the indicted businessman’s campaign, including the assassination attempt on Trump, immigration views, the future of energy being produced and the economy.
Musk, who offered millions of dollars in financial support to Trump’s White House bid, provided his view on climate change, promoting how the United States should avoid vilifying the oil and gas industry but “should lean in the direction of sustainability.” In the past, Trump claimed to be an advocate for “clean air” and “clean water” but has openly denied believing in climate change.
This is just completely insane:Elon Musk goes into an incredibly detailed breakdown of CO2, clean energy and climate change that I think is very moderate and fair, and Trump responds quickly turning the conversation on its head to make it about the dangers of nuclear bombs.… pic.twitter.com/W9HggbOxpb— Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) August 13, 2024
While discussing immigration, the world’s richest man, who was born in South Africa, said he thinks legal immigration is a good thing and labeled most of the people who cross the border illegally as “good people,” however, Musk advocated for a more robust vetting process in an effort to stop dangerous migrants from crossing into the country. Trump’s extreme views on border patrol have prompted false narratives, including falsely claiming that other nations have emptied inmates of their prisons and mental institutions into the southern border.
He even claimed that some are entering the United States and speaking languages no one has heard.
As conversation topics targeted some of the country’s leading business owners, some tapped into the interview to raise concerns about how Trump overpowered close to an hour of the conversation. According to Business Insider, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban noted how long Trump spoke over Musk.
“Anyone tracking how much each participant in this Spaces “conversation” is speaking ?” he wrote on X.
He followed up by asking, “Aren’t most conversations a little more balanced? Shouldn’t both participants ask the other questions rather than only one asking?”
Other business owners like Aaron Levie, CEO of Box, took another route and asked Musk to request insight from the GOP presidential candidate on topics he has dodged, like celebrating the fictional villain from the 1991 film, “The Silence of the Lambs, “Hannibal Lector, during a rally. “.@elonmusk, please ask him to explain the Hannibal Lecter reference,” Levie said.
Levie later deleted his post, but political socialites like California Gov. Gavin Newsom backed him up. The governor, who has a strained relationship with both Musk and Trump, called the interview a “complete failure.” “Glitchy. Tech issues. Uncomfortable silences. A complete failure to launch. And that’s just the candidate,” Newsom said on the platform.
Some CEOs praised the conversation, like Mark Pincus, the founder of Zynga and the genius behind the game FarmVille. “Trump is strong in conversation. Hate me for stating truths!” he said.
Source: Black Enterprise
