Tech titan-turned-online provocateur Elon Musk has weighed in on Donald Trump’s proposal to “terminate” parts of the US Constitution to overturn the 2020 election.
The Tesla chief executive wrote on Twitter, a social media platform he recently acquired for $44bn, that he agreed with the Democrats and the select number of Republicans who had come out swinging against the one-term president for suggesting that the landmark legal document be amended to suit him.
“The Constitution is greater than any President. End of story,” tweeted Mr Musk late Sunday night, about a day after Mr Trump took to his own social media platform – Truth Social – to falsely claim that the results of the 2020 election were “fraudulent” and argued that, therefore, the country’s supreme law should bend to his will.
“A Massive Fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution,” wrote Mr Trump, as he repeated his previously debunked claims of election fraud. “Our great ‘Founders’ did not want, and would not condone, False & Fraudulent Elections!”
Mr Musk had left his comment about the former president’s proposal beneath an article shared by Fox News, which focused on the Biden administration’s reaction.
“Attacking the constitution and all it stands for is anathema to the soul of our nation and should be universally condemned,” said White House spokesperson Andrew Bates on Saturday, adding that the Constitution is a “sacrosanct document”.
“You cannot only love America when you win,” quipped the White House official.
The comments from the twice impeached president continued to draw backlash from both sides of the aisles, with top figures in the Democratic Party labelling him a “danger to our democracy” while Republicans like representative Mike Turner said that he “vehemently” disagreed with his remarks.
Criticising Mr Trump, he said the comments should be a factor when Republicans decide who should lead their party in 2024.
“There is a political process that has to go forward before anybody is a frontrunner or anybody is even the candidate for the party,” said Mr Turner. “I believe that people certainly are going to take into consideration a statement like this as they evaluate a candidate.”
Outgoing congresswoman Liz Cheney, a bold and frequent critic of Mr Trump, struck out at the one-term president on Sunday night.
“Donald Trump believes we should terminate “all rules, regulations and articles, even those found in the Constitution” to overturn the 2020 election,” tweeted Ms Cheney, the vice chairwoman of the 6 January committee investigating the violent insurrection on the Capitol.
“That was his view on 1/6 and remains his view today. No honest person can now deny that Trump is an enemy of the Constitution.”
For his part, Mr Trump has remained mum about the bold suggestion since posting it, apart from resharing old video clips and articles posted on alt-right websites.
One post on Sunday read: “ENDORSEMENTS ROLL IN: GOP Lawmakers Line Up Behind Trump, Only He Can Stop This Swamp”.
Mr Trump announced his bid for a second term in the White House last month. It came as many within his party tried to distance themselves from him after a Republican “red wave” failed to materialise during the November midterms, with some pinning that blame on the former president’s tendency to focus too much on backwards-looking policies.
