Tesla CEO Elon Musk is opening up about his ideological shift toward the political Right, posting a meme and numerous tweets ripping the Left for being hijacked by extremists, forcing him toward the Right.
“I strongly supported Obama for President, but today’s Democratic Party has been hijacked by extremists,” Musk said via Twitter.
In a meme he posted on Thursday, the SpaceX CEO outlined how he’s moved toward the Right since 2008.
The meme’s 2012 timeline shows a “fellow liberal” on the Left running toward the extreme far-Left, in effect leaving another stick-figure drawing labeled “me” moved toward the center. By the 2021 timeline, a “woke ‘progressive'” is now all the way on the far-Left, calling the stick-figure labeled “me,” or Musk, in this case, a “bigot.” Musk has stayed in the same spot in the meme but is now considered to be on the Right.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 28, 2022
“Today, Elon tweeted this diagram by [Swipe Wright], which sums up how a lot of people (including me) feel,” writer Tim Urban captioned Musk’s meme. “Then a bunch of [people] responded with graphs showing that Republican politicians have moved farther right in that time than Dems have moved left. Here’s what I think is happening: It’s true that on aggregate, the right has moved more to the extreme than the left in Washington. But the small group on the far left has become very *culturally* powerful & out of fear, the rest of the left has often allowed them to speak (and make policies) for the whole left.”
“So even though the left hasn’t moved that far left (as is shown by voting results), the left is in a sense being held hostage by their extreme wing, making a lot of people who enthusiastically voted for Obama feel politically homeless today,” Urban added.
It's true that on aggregate, the right has moved more to the extreme than the left in Washington. But the small group on the far left has become very *culturally* powerful & out of fear, the rest of the left has often allowed them to speak (and make policies) for the whole left.
— Tim Urban (@waitbutwhy) April 29, 2022
I strongly supported Obama for President, but today’s Democratic Party has been hijacked by extremists
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 29, 2022
After emphasizing his previous support for Obama, the entrepreneur then put things more bluntly, writing, “The far left hates everyone, themselves included!”
“But I’m no fan of the far right either,” he added. “Let’s have less hate and more love.”
But I’m no fan of the far right either.
Let’s have less hate and more love.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 29, 2022
Musk also took note of how Democrats have been treating him, asserting that he tries “not to pick fights,” but does “finish them.”
“Can you blame [Elon Musk] for turning away from a Democratic Party that has made him out to be the embodiment of pure evil?” a Twitter user posted. “Would you have the strength to support a political party that made hating you specifically one of their core tenants?”
“When you fire shots at Elon, he fires back. Democratic leaders have no idea how much long term damage they did to the party picking a fight with him,” the post added.
“I try not to pick fights, but I do finish them,” Musk promised.
Can you blame @elonmusk for turning away from a Democratic Party that has made him out to be the embodiment of pure evil?
Would you have the strength to support a political party that made hating you specifically one of their core tenants?
— Whole Mars Catalog (@WholeMarsBlog) April 29, 2022
I try not to pick fights, but I do finish them
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 29, 2022
Musk this week finalized a deal to acquire Twitter, promising to promote the principles of free speech, making him an enemy of the Left.