Whether you agree with Elon Musk and Donald Trump’s politics, or you’re normal, anyone with two brain cells to rub together knew Musk and Trump’s relationship was going to blow up at some point. They were simply too used to getting exactly what they wanted to ever work together well long-term, so it wasn’t exactly surprising to see their relationship (at least temporarily) collapse in spectacular fashion. Almost immediately, Rep. Ro Khanna suggested Democrats should welcome Musk back, but Dan O’Dowd, founder of the safety group the Dawn Project, couldn’t disagree more, saying anyone who wants Musk back is a “terribly weak” person.
I spoke with O’Dowd over the phone on Friday, and when asked about his thoughts on those who thought Musk might still have a place in the Democratic Party, the noted Tesla critic did not hold back, even with a PR rep also on the line:
He already proved he’s totally disloyal to everybody, right? I mean, he could have exited the Democratic Party and become a Republican in the way that others have done it, which is, you say, either, “My personal views have changed,” or, “The party has left me,” or whatever, and you move over to the other side of the aisle and start doing things. He left guns blazing, backing out of the room, guns blazing, insulting everybody in sight. I can’t see how anybody takes him back unless they’re just really a terribly weak person.
Musk is not loyal to anybody
Musk only being out for himself popped up frequently as a theme in our conversation, and from the sound of it, O’Dowd believes that’s Musk’s biggest flaw. He also didn’t stop after calling Khanna weak, saying:
He didn’t just leave [the White House] quietly. He didn’t go back to being SpaceX and Tesla. The day after he gets out the door, he starts firing rockets and missiles into the entire Republican process. The guy is not loyal to anybody. Never has, never will be. He is loyal to himself only. He has his goals in life, and he will do anything to meet them. He has no limits. There’s no guardrails and no limits, literally. And that’s been confirmed by his brother and by Isaacson, as well.
He said something like, “Empathy is the greatest weakness of Western civilization.” I mean, he has no empathy. That’s what a lot of people say. He does not consider anybody else’s situation or opinion or what’s good or bad for them. That’s simply irrelevant. It’s the world is just a machine, for him to operate. I think that explains a lot of his personality and a lot of why he makes decisions.
Of course, Musk could still start that third political party he posted about. You never know. And maybe he could convince Khanna to join that party, instead of the other way around.
