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Can the world’s richest man save the GOP and himself?

Published October 20, 2026 9:00AM (EDT)

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk reacts after being awarded the National Medal of Science during the Golden Age of American Innovation Summit at the Institute of Peace on October 08, 2026 in Washington. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

A version of this essay first appeared in Crash Course , Salon's free morning newsletter. Sign up for early access to articles like this, plus more of Salon’s bold journalism on how policies, movements and culture wars affect real people.

Remember when billionaire Elon Musk and President Donald Trump were supposedly enemies? At the start of Trump’s second term, the world’s richest man, was busy ripping through nearly every level of the U.S. government with the Trump-approved Department of Government Efficiency.…