Musk says people accusing Trump of endangering democracy are the real danger

The world's richest man, Elon Musk, addressed a crowded municipality hallway Saturday successful Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, wherever he downplayed nan Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot and suggested message ballots were a "recipe for fraud."

In consequence to a man who asked Musk what his connection was to young voters who interest "that voting for a 2nd Trump presidency will lead to antiauthoritarian backsliding," Musk replied, "The media tries to qualify Jan. 6 arsenic immoderate benignant of convulsive insurrection, which is simply not nan case," he said, prompting applause from nan crowd. More than 100 rule enforcement unit were injured successful nan attack, immoderate beaten pinch their ain weapons, erstwhile a mob of Trump supporters who believed his lies that nan 2020 election was stolen from him stormed nan Capitol to extremity nan certification of votes.

"It's not arsenic though nan Jan. 6 protests had nary merit, they had immoderate merit," Musk continued. "I disagree pinch nan magnitude of what they did, but it's not arsenic though location were nary issues," said Musk. 

Musk claimed that group "who opportunity Trump is simply a threat to populist are themselves a threat to democracy," a remark that was besides received pinch applause by nan crowd of respective 100 group packed into nan ballroom. Many much watched nan arena connected X, nan societal media level Musk purchased 2 years ago.

Trump, he said, "did really show group to not beryllium violent." While Trump did show nan crowd connected Jan. 6 to protestation "peacefully and patriotically," he besides encouraged them to "fight for illustration hell" to extremity Democrat Joe Biden from becoming nan president. 

Musk spent astir 2 hours taking questions from municipality hallway participants. The freewheeling convention wrong a ballroom astatine a edifice successful downtown Lancaster touched connected a dizzying scope of topics, from abstraction exploration and nan Tesla cybertruck to migration and nan efficacy of psychiatric drugs. The municipality hallway was portion of Musk's efforts done his ace PAC to thief boost Trump successful plaything states up of nan Nov. 5 statesmanlike predetermination against Democrat Kamala Harris. Trump has said he'd springiness Musk a domiciled successful his management if he wins nan presidency.

Musk was mostly praised by nan municipality hallway crowd arsenic a visionary and solicited for proposal and thoughts astir education, limb wrestling, taxation loopholes and whether he'd bargain nan Chicago White Sox. (He said he was a tech feline and had to prime his battles.) Trump won Lancaster County successful some nan 2016 and 2020 statesmanlike elections, and he won Pennsylvania successful 2016 against Hillary Clinton but mislaid it successful 2020 to Joe Biden.

Musk said he was successful favour of "not dense handed" regularisation of artificial intelligence and railed against "woke religion" arsenic "fundamentally an extinctionist religion." He said nan U.S. commencement complaint is simply a important concern.

He said he believes Jesus was a existent personification who lived astir 2,000 years agone and, erstwhile asked for nan champion proposal he's ever received, replied: "I urge studying physics."

Musk, nan world's richest man, has committed much than $70 cardinal to boost Trump successful nan predetermination and, astatine events connected behalf of his ace PAC, has encouraged supporters to clasp voting early. Still, echoing immoderate of Trump's misgivings astir nan method, Musk raised his ain doubts astir nan process. He called message ballots "a unusual anomaly that sewage popularized during COVID," and he went connected to opportunity of message voting that "really, you person an evident look for fraud and inability to beryllium fraud."

LANCASTER, PENNSYLVANIA - OCTOBER 26: SpaceX and Tesla laminitis Elon Musk speaks during an America PAC municipality hallway connected October 26, 2024 successful Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  Samuel Corum / Getty Images

There are a number of safeguards to protect mail-in ballots, pinch various ballot verification protocols, including each authorities requiring a voter's signature. 

He besides called municipality hallway subordinate Judey Kamora to nan shape to springiness her a ample $1 cardinal check, portion of his promotion to give away $1 cardinal a time to a elector successful a plaything authorities who has signed his ace PAC's petition backing nan U.S. Constitution.

Musk made nary mention of nan Justice Department's caller informing that his $1 cardinal sweepstakes could break national predetermination law. Nor did he remark connected a Wall Street Journal study that nan tech billionaire has maintained regular interaction pinch Russian President Vladimir Putin. 

The giveaways are conscionable good pinch Josh Fox, 32, a UPS driver from Dillsburg, Pennsylvania.

"That's cool," Fox said, waiting to get into nan rally earlier Saturday. "It would beryllium bully to person it."

Fox, who plans to ballot for Trump, dismissed immoderate proposal nan money whitethorn break national predetermination rules.

"It's astir driving successful support and driving successful group who are successful support of nan Constitution," Fox said.

Anne Bryson contributed to this report.

In:
• Pennsylvania
• Democracy
• Elon Musk
• Voting
• Kamala Harris
• Donald Trump
• Politics