Elon Musk said Donald Trump should "sail into the sunset" rather than run for president again and predicted Florida Governor Ron DeSantis will easily beat Joe Biden if the two square off in 2024.
In a series of tweets to his more than 100 million followers, Musk pointed out Trump, now 76, would be 82 by the end of a potential second presidential term. That's "too old to be chief executive of anything, let alone the United States of America," the Tesla Inc. CEO wrote. Musk also said there was "too much drama" when Trump was in office.
This marks the first time Musk, who's also CEO of US government contractor Space Exploration Technologies Corp., has said Trump should forgo another campaign. In an interview with Bloomberg News last month, Musk said he was undecided when asked if he'd back Trump, who's strongly hinted at another run.
Musk, 51, has been increasingly vocal about his leanings the last few months after tweeting in September last year that he preferred to stay out of politics. His latest musings were in response to criticism Trump directed at him this past weekend at a rally in Alaska.
Referring to Musk's recent assertion that he voted Republican for the first time in June, Trump said this contradicted what Musk has told him. The former president used an expletive to describe Musk and took a shot at the merger agreement with Twitter Inc. that he's now trying to terminate, calling it "rotten.
Musk was less pointed in his posts about Trump, writing that he doesn't "hate the man" and calling for Democrats to "call off the attack" on the former president
During his interview with Bloomberg last month, Musk said he was willing to put roughly $25 million into a political action committee. He tweeted earlier about creating a super PAC to support centrist candidates from all parties. He's steadily criticized Biden and Democrats for months, claiming the president is beholden to labor unions and the party is undermining his businesses.
Biden has shrugged off Musk's jabs and gloomy view of the US economy. Last month, he wished the billionaire "lots of luck on his trip to the moon." Bloomberg.