Elon Musk has become a favorite of far-right circles in recent weeks, stealing the spotlight from the president that helped get him there.
In a review of “message boards, encrypted channels, social media platforms, online search trends, and public statements,” WIRED reports findings that suggest that the tech billionaire and his work at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have overshadowed discussion on President Donald Trump and his administration’s movements.
“The conspiracist community is putting Musk on the worship pedestal next to Trump,” Mike Rothschild, a journalist and researcher specializing in conspiracy theories and online extremism, told WIRED. “As Musk’s personal politics have veered hard right, these communities have viewed him as the blunt instrument that Trump will use to smash the deep state.”
“They aren’t paying attention to the trade war stuff because it’s complicated, and because Trump backed down almost right away,” he added, referring to the president’s recent tariff fiascos with Mexico and Canada.
Musk arguably made a grandiose display of federal chaos over the past week as he launched attacks against a slew of agencies, including the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), through his cost-cutting DOGE initiative. He’s dominated Google Trends as a result WIRED adds, with data showing that searches for “Elon Musk” have outweighed those for “Donald Trump” roughly starting around the end of January and exacerbating through February so far.
WIRED also monitored the pro-Trump message board, The Donald, and found that its home page was “dominated” by discussions on Musk and DOGE.
“Elon helped save the world,” one user reportedly wrote underneath a link to a news story about Musk being nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize by Branko Grims, a Slovenian member of the European Parliament. “I agree with you that he has been the GOAT [Greatest of All Time] for Trump,” another user reportedly wrote.
The outlet also examined far-right communities on messaging service Telegram, and found that Musk’s dismantling of USAID has been particularly lauded by its members who previously embraced Musk for his evocative hand gesture during Trump’s inauguration.
The Tesla CEO and his DOGE lackeys currently have access to the Treasury Department’s payment system that houses highly sensitive data including the Social Security numbers of millions of taxpayers.
Federal agencies have since gone through a series of changes as Musk attempts to overhaul their current framework in what he’s described as a clean-up of fraud.
