Topline
Elon Musk told former CNN host Don Lemon he isn’t leaning toward either presidential candidate but is “leaning away” from President Joe Biden, and shared a few details about a recent meeting he had with former President Donald Trump, in an interview that led Musk to cancel Lemon’s deal with social network X.
Key Facts
Former CNN host Don Lemon returned to the news channel Wednesday to discuss the interview, which is expected to be released in full next week.
In a clip of the interview shown during the CNN segment, Musk said he’s not leaning toward any one candidate but is “leaning away from Biden,” before laughing.
Musk also spoke about a meeting he had with Donald Trump this month, which he said occurred while he was “having breakfast at a friend’s place” and resulted in Trump “doing most of the talking”—though he didn’t give any details on what was discussed.
Musk, who has said he won’t donate to Biden or Trump, told Lemon he wasn’t funding Trump’s legal bills and that Trump didn’t ask him for money or donations.
Lemon told CNN news anchor Erin Burnett that Musk may not endorse anyone now but that “you never know with him,” inferring Musk may endorse someone at a later time.
Surprising Fact
Trump’s campaign has nearly $30 million less than Biden’s. The former president reported just over $30 million in its coffers at the end of January, compared to the more than $55 million that Biden had on hand.
Key Background
Lemon, who was fired from CNN in April, was set to join the Musk-owned X platform with his own independent show. Lemon announced Musk had canceled the show in a video Wednesday, saying Musk was mad at him about the interview that Lemon characterized as “tense at times.” X said in a statement it decided not to enter into a commercial partnership with Lemon, adding the ousted CNN host was still free to publish content on the platform “without censorship.”
Tangent
Musk has said he voted for Biden in 2020, but he has expressed increasingly conservative viewpoints in recent years. He backed short-lived GOP presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in 2022, and he has fanned the conspiracy theory that Democrats are seeking to grant citizenship to undocumented immigrants to earn their votes.
Further Reading
Don Lemon Says Elon Musk Canceled X Show After Tough Interview (Forbes)
Elon Musk Won’t Donate To Biden Or Trump In 2024 Race (Forbes)