Elon Musk has branded Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde’s words ‘disgraceful’ after she urged President Donald Trump to ‘show mercy’ on the LGBTQ community in a prayer service.
Elon Musk and the wider Republican Party’s targeting of LGBTQ individuals alongside so-called ‘woke’ political beliefs is well known, and the X CEO has once again used his far reaching social media platform to brand those looking to ‘show mercy’ as ‘disgraceful’.
The richest man in the world has been a close ally of President Trump for many months now, supporting him during his election campaign and remaining a key part of his post-victory plans. This includes a new role as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which has pledged to unilaterally cut funding for DEI and LGBTQ initiatives.
Many right wing individuals including Musk have thus become enraged at a plea from Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde at the inaugural prayer service, as she begged the President and his team to think carefully about their actions involving LGBTQ Americans.
Budde petitioned at the service: “In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now. There are gay, lesbian, and transgender children in democratic, republican, and independent families, some who fear for their lives.”
It was indeed disgraceful
This genuine and innocuous plea hasn’t exactly gone down well with many conservatives, with political strategist Scott Jennings remarking on CNN that “the bishop politicized the church, and it was frankly a disgrace.”
Musk shortly replied in agreement, declaring that “it was indeed disgraceful,” though he has received a lot of pushback from social media, with many coming to support Budde’s words and actions.
One user hit back against Musk, pointing out: “This Nazi salute is what was disgraceful. The brave bishop spoke truth to power.” This was, of course, accompanied by a photo of Musk allegedly performing the Nazi gesture on stage at the inauguration, which has received widespread criticism.
Others have outlined that Budde’s actions are “what courage looks like” and “heroic,” and another user has argued that “standing up to Donald Trump right in his face,” is far braver than what ‘more powerful’ individuals like Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, and Tim Cook have achieved.
Budde’s plea for mercy has received much ire from republicans on social media, including Musk (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Some have even leaned on the logical and legal circumstances to condemn Musk’s fury, asserting: “It’s a church. Freedom of religion [is] just like freedom of speech. Both are in the first amendment remember.”
This hasn’t stopped both President Trump and Vice President Vance from showing their anger during the service though, and some of the former’s first executive orders which target transgender individuals give a pessimistic outlook to the future of LGBTQ rights in the U.S.
Elon Musk’s ex-wife and musician Grimes has written a lengthy response to criticism on social media after her former husband performed a ‘Nazi gesture’ during Trump’s presidential inauguration.
There appears to have been quite the spotlight on Elon Musk during Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration, as he’s been shown ‘bizarrely’ celebrating space-related announcements and he was also sued minutes after the event began.
However, what drew the most attention for the current head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) was accusations of a ‘Nazi gesture’ that Musk performed multiple times while speaking on stage.
He has seemingly denied ‘attacks’ from people, claiming that people criticizing him “need better dirty tricks,” but this hasn’t stopped his ex-wife from also receiving pushback on social media.
Grimes, who removed ‘anti imperialist’ from her Twitter bio after marrying Musk, posted a lengthy statement on X after one user claimed that they were reaching ‘breaking point’ with her. The original post remarked: “I’m more than willing to sacrifice my grimes follow and get a tattoo coverup for this btw. I’m hitting a breaking point.”
In response, Grimes opens her lengthy post with the notion that “it is unhealthy that people are this upset when I have not even been online yet today and am only just learning about this controversy now.”
While I deeply respect your concern- it is unhealthy that people are this upset when I have not even been online yet today and am only just learning about this controversy now. I don’t know what happened and I will not make a rash statement – I am not a citizen of this country.…
She further responds by claiming that she is “not a citizen of this country,” and that she’s “not going to say something that will create an international scandal.”
Continuing on, Grimes remarks that “I will not make a statement every time he does something. I can only send love back into a world that is hurting,” adding that “I feel a moral imperative to only add to the mess when something positive can be done.”
Finally, she outlines that she “could go talk s*** and be on a bunch of magazine covers and be a feminist hero and get clout – but it would serve no purpose. I choose my children’s wellbeing.”
This is particularly pertinent as Grimes remains in a challenging custody battle with Musk after filing a countersuit following a settlement last August. She has previously detailed that Musk has become ‘unrecognizable’ to her, and that her social media posts have been used against her in court.
While some – including the original poster that Grimes is responding to – do offer their sympathy in regards to her situation, many others aren’t quite as convinced.
“I think this goes way beyond ‘what your ex did’,” one user argues in the replies, “I agree that he does not represent you or your values but apart from having a backbone and standing up for the ones who look up to you is to have an active stance against the people you defend from time to time.”
Grimes came to the aid of her ex-husband a few days ago, as she has also verified his gaming accolades among accusations of cheating.
Grimes has argued that she doesn’t need to comment on all of Elon’s actions (Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)
Some have even referenced this in relation to her assertation that she doesn’t need to make statements about his actions, as one reply disputes: “Genuinely not trying to be rude, but this is literally what you did the other day about the Diablo/PoE2 stuff and then the next day he admitted what everyone suspected. You went out of your way to make a statement on it…”
Regardless of what side you land on, it’s clear many expect more from Grimes considering how outspoken she had been at the start of her career.
UK safeguarding minister Jess Phillips has said that Elon Musk’s recent actions on social media had ‘endangered’ her, particularly due to the ‘disinformation’ being spread by the richest man in the world.
Elon Musk‘s interference and criticism of the UK government on X (formerly Twitter) has remained one of the biggest news stories of recent times, as the owner of the social media platform has targeted past cases of grooming gangs across Britain.
While Musk has set his sights on the government as a whole and current prime minister Keir Starmer, it is safeguarding minister Jess Phillips that has been arguably the primary focus of attacks from the tech mogul.
Phillips has been labelled a “rape genocide apologist” and a “witch” by Musk, and has now expressed in an interview with BBC’s Newsnight that she feels ‘endangered’ by the targeted threats and ‘disinformation’ spread by the Tesla CEO.
Jess Phillips has expressed that she feels ‘endangered’ following Musk’s targeted attacks on social media (Gareth Fuller – WPA Pool/Getty Images)
She revealed that the threat to her safety had increased since Musk’s social media tirade, but remains committed to making an “actual change” to the way that local areas deal with grooming gangs.
“I will base my decisions on evidence, not on very rich men in America,” Phillips detailed in the same interview when questioned about her decision to favor locally-led inquires as opposed to those spearheaded by the Home Office.
She argued that her decision to adopt this approach was inspired by the result of local investigations in Telford: “I watched what happened there, and I saw a process that was the only one that has ever done anything to actually change the way the council, the local police, the local CPS have actually changed, and I took part in that process for years.”
She continued on to argue: “It is an independent inquiry led locally and it’s the only model I’ve seen work, and I’ve worked in this field for 15 years.”
Phillips has also received support from survivors of gender-based violence in Telford, as reported by the Guardian, in which they detail that there was “no one in public life who has done more to support victims and survivors and to advocate for their interests.”
Musk remains firm in his own views, however, continuing to support Conservative and Reform MPs in their requests for a full national inquiry, asking his followers on X to contact their member of parliament.
Conservative party members are attempting, with Musk’s support, to amend the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill currently tabled by Labour in order to include a “national statutory inquiry into historical child sexual exploitation, focused on grooming gangs.”
If this was approved it would kill the bill that is currently in the process of being motioned, although due to the significant majority held by Labour in the House of Commons, it is unlikely to happen.
Keir Starmer has criticized Musk’s X tirade, claiming that a ‘line has been crossed’ (Leon Neal/Getty Images)
Starmer has said in an interview with The Mirror that the push from Conservative and Reform MPs is “the elevation of the desire for retweets over any real interest in the safeguarding of children.”
This isn’t the first time in recent memory that Musk has attempted to destabilize government bills either, as he was criticized in late December after a US budget at risk of failing following his cost-cutting recommendations.
Elon Musk has been all jokes after receiving notice of lawsuits almost immediately after Trump’s inauguration began, as he’s taken to social media to outline his apathy for the situation.
It was clear from the moment that Elon Musk joined Donald Trump on his presidential campaign trail that the richest man in the world would likely play a key role in government if the republican candidate managed to secure victory.
This became reality once Trump won out in early November, as not only did Musk’s own fortune rise dramatically, he also secured himself a position in what is likely to be an incredibly powerful advisory board.
Musk became co-lead of the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), and bold claims that the agency would cut $2,000,000,000 in federal spending have dominated the news leading up to Trump’s inauguration.
However, it took just minutes after the event began for Musk and DOGE to be slapped with a number of lawsuits, claiming malpractice within the department’s current format.
DOGE has faced a number of lawsuits in the moments following Trump’s inauguration (Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
The main lawsuit, as reported by the Washington Post, is led by public interest law firm National Security Counselors.
They allege that DOGE is currently breaking a 1972 law that requires advisory boards – which the department currently is – to disclose proceedings and follow specific rules.
These include maintaining ‘fairly balanced’ representation, keeping minutes of any meetings, and allowing the public to attend meetings, among many more.
Kel McClanahan outlines in the lawsuit that “DOGE is not exempted from FACA’s requirements,” and that “all meetings of DOGE, including those conducted through an electronic medium, must be open to the public.”
In its current state DOGE does not allow any of these required functions, and remains largely a private collective outside of the official account on X despite reports that Musk’s own mother has joined in on meetings.
Another lawsuit targets the ‘uncertain legal status’ of DOGE, although reports that part of the department will be folded into the government could falter this particular case.
Musk himself appears to not be too bothered about the barrage of lawsuits coming his way, taking to social media to declare: “Can someone start a lawsuit counter? How long until we hit triple digits? [laughing emoji]”
Can someone start a lawsuit counter? How long until we hit triple digits? 🤣🤣
i guess some people just really love government waste
He’s certainly no stranger to being sued, as it was only recently that he faced threat of a lawsuit from the French government, but one might think that the Tesla CEO has more pressing things to worry about at the moment, including but not limited to accusations of Nazi gestures on stage.
It’s unclear what the result of these lawsuits will be at the current point in time, but they are likely to not be the last that both DOGE and Musk will be threatened with during the Trump administration.
Elon Musk has revealed that his position as co-head of the incoming Department of Government Efficiency will not be paid, arguing that this is a ‘very efficient’ means of achieving his goal to cut spending by over $2,000,000,000.
There has perhaps been no one closer to president-elect Donald Trump since his election victory than Elon Musk, in part due to the tech CEO’s impending position as head of the Department of Government Efficiency, otherwise known as ‘DOGE’.
This role, shared with Vivek Ramaswamy, has the two billionaires join forces in an attempt to cut ‘unnecessary’ US spending – with Musk himself pledging to slash over $2 trillion from the US budget by the agency’s 2026 expiration date.
What is the Department of Government Efficiency?
The Department of Government Efficiency is a temporary advisory board headed by Musk and Ramaswamy that is in charge of making significant reductions to US federal government spending.
Musk’s pledge of $2 trillion in cuts would represent around 30% of the current total federal spending, as reported by the BBC, and many infer that targeted areas would include funding for education, healthcare, and inclusion initiatives.
Musk and Ramaswamy have promised major cuts to US funding in the name of efficiency (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
The official DOGE X account has outlined a number of areas in which it believes current spending to be ‘inefficient’, with a recent post highlighting “$1.7 trillion in regulatory costs” that would likely give freedom to Musk-owned companies like Tesla and SpaceX if relaxed or removed.
Furthermore, Musk himself has somewhat retracted his initial projection of $2 trillion in cuts, revealing in an interview: “I think we’ll try for $2 trillion. I think that’s the best case outcome. But I do think you kind of have to have to have some overage. I think if we try for $2 trillion, we’ve got a good shot at getting $1 [trillion].”
The department has also come under fire following it’s unusual application process, which initially required users to ‘pay’ Elon Musk if they wanted to show their interest in the advertised roles. This has since been amended, but many still have issue with the ‘shocking requirements’ for many of the positions.
Will Elon Musk be paid for DOGE?
Musk revealed on X in a reply to current US senator Elizabeth Warren that he won’t be paid for his position at DOGE. He outlined:
“Unlike you, neither of us are being paid, so it is very efficient indeed. @DOGE will do great things for the American people. Let history be the judge.”
Unlike you, neither of us are being paid, so it is very efficient indeed. @DOGE will do great things for the American people. Let history be the judge.
Current US senators are paid a salary of $174,000 per annum, totaling $17.4 million every year – which is a mere 0.00087% of the savings that Musk is alleging to make in his DOGE tenure.
Additionally, Elon Musk is currently the richest individual in the world with an estimated net worth of around $426 billion according to the Bloomberg billionaires index – so it’s understandable that he’d be willing to forgo payment for a temporary role in government.
Social media is very split on Musk’s ascendancy to this new role, with the replies to the initial post showing both sides of the current landscape.
“I think both of you deserve to be paid, but it’s not like either of you need the money,” outlines one user, continuing on to declare “nonetheless, thank you for your service and I hope you do a great job.”
Another user isn’t as welcoming to Musk’s power though, questioning him on his priorities when it comes to money saving: “I’m sure you’ll be judging efficiency in a very unbiased way. And I’m sure if you found that day, giving SpaceX government incentives is inefficiency, you make that cut yeah?”
It remains yet to be seen where the cuts will actually manifest as DOGE won’t officially begin operations until Trump becomes president, but its clear that not everything is behind Musk’s money saving vision.
