Musk Uses X to Manipulate Democracy: Harris Campaign Team
Elon Musk (L) and Donald Trump (R). Photo: X/ @krassenstein
August 13, 2024 Hour: 12:17 pm
In early August, officials from five U.S. states also mentioned that X’s AI chatbot provided false electoral information.
On Monday, Republican candidate Donald Trump used the platform X to boost his electoral campaign with a live conversation with magnate Elon Musk.
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X tested its system with eight million simultaneous listeners, and their conversation was ultimately followed by around 1.3 million people. “Congratulations. Do I get paid for this?” Trump asked, in light of the high level of interest generated.
Musk had promised that their exchange would be unscripted and without limits, but he focused on topics favorable to the former president, such as illegal immigration. This conversation occurred at a time when Vice President Kamala Harris is leading Trump in the polls.
According to an average compiled by the website FiveThirtyEight, the Democratic candidate has 46.1 percent of the vote intentions, surpassing Trump by 2.8 percentage points.
“If you vote for her, you should get your head examined,” Trump said, while Musk argued that Democrats are “rewriting history” by portraying Kamala Harris as a “moderate” politician. In July, Musk publicly stated that he supported Trump in the elections, despite considering himself historically a “moderate Democrat.”
“We are truly at a critical turning point for the country… You are the path to prosperity for the United States, and Kamala is the opposite,” the magnate said, encouraging voters to support Trump.
The two-hour exchange lacked visuals, but with Musk’s support, Trump turned it into a digital rally to launch his usual criticisms against the Democratic side and defend his own legacy.
“This is about much more than me or my life. We are going to save this country. The country is sinking, and these people are bad and dishonest… They say they will strengthen the border, but they have been the worst in history,” Trump said before Musk reinforced his stance by emphasizing that the facts “speak for themselves.”
Kamala Harris’s team was quick to react to the conversation between Trump and Musk, highlighting that the platform X has become a breeding ground for hate speech and misinformation.
“Now, Musk uses his immense wealth and notable reach to try to manipulate our democracy… The entire Trump campaign serves people like Elon Musk and himself. Rich guys obsessed with themselves, who will sell out the middle class,” they said.
Previously, in early August, secretaries of state from Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Washington stated that X’s AI chatbot, Grok, provided false election information, including one suggesting that Kamala Harris was not eligible to appear on the 2024 presidential ballot.
teleSUR/ JF Sources: EFE – Xinhua
