'This is oligarchy at work': Bernie Sanders accuses Elon Musk of undermining democracy with wealth and influence

US Senator Bernie Sanders has launched a sharp critique of Elon Musk, accusing the world’s richest man of leveraging his vast fortune and influence to steer American politics away from democracy and toward oligarchy. Sanders’ remarks came after Musk publicly pressured lawmakers regarding the recent US government funding bill.

In a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter), Sanders questioned Musk’s growing political clout. “Elon Musk, who became $200 BILLION richer since Trump was elected, objected [to the government funding agreement]. Are Republicans beholden to the American people? Or President Musk? This is oligarchy at work,” Sanders wrote.

The Vermont senator also criticised Musk’s warnings to lawmakers, accusing him of threatening elected officials. “Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, is threatening to unseat elected officials if they do not follow his orders to shut down the government during the holidays,” Sanders posted.

Musk has been vocal in his opposition to the recently passed spending bill, calling it bloated and overcomplicated. “Any member of the House or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending bill deserves to be voted out in two years!” Musk declared on X. Instead, he endorsed a Republican alternative bill, praising it as simpler and more efficient. Musk also shifted blame to Democrats, suggesting they would be responsible for a potential government shutdown.

Despite Sanders’ accusations, Musk has downplayed claims of undue influence, stating his posts merely aim to inform followers, who are free to form their own opinions.

Musk’s wealth continues to soar, with his net worth recently reaching a record $486 billion, fuelled by the success of Tesla and SpaceX. Tesla’s stock price and SpaceX’s $350 billion valuation have bolstered Musk’s financial standing, even as Tesla’s shares faced slight declines.

Sanders, a longtime critic of wealth inequality, highlighted how Musk’s wealth surged following Donald Trump’s 2016 election, when Tesla’s market rally reflected expectations of favourable ties between Musk and the White House. Sanders warned this represents an increasing concentration of wealth and power in the hands of a few billionaires.

“Never before in American history have so few billionaires, so few people had so much wealth and so much power,” Sanders said in a recent clip from Meet the Press. Comparing the US to Russia, Sanders quipped, “In Russia, Putin has an oligarchy. Well, we’ve got an oligarchy here, too.”

Sanders’ critique of Musk is part of his wider campaign against wealth inequality and billionaires’ influence. The senator has clashed with other tech moguls, including Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg and Microsoft’s Bill Gates, over their immense wealth.

“How much do you deserve? Can you make it on a billion? Think you could feed the family? Probably,” Sanders remarked, reiterating his stance that billionaires’ wealth should be capped.