With US poll date nearing, Trump to give interview to Musk next week
Aug 07, 2024
New York [US], August 7 : Former US President Donald Trump has announced that he will be interviewed by billionaire CEO and entrepreneur Elon Musk next week.
"On Monday night I'll be doing a major interview with Elon Musk," the former president wrote on his Truth Social media platform. "Details to follow," Trump added, as reported by US publications including The Hill newspaper.
The Republican presidential nominee was recently interviewed at his Mar-a-Lago residence by live streamer Adin Ross. Trump noted that the interview with Ross helped the streaming platform 'Kick' break its viewing record.
Last month, Musk, who owns the social media platform X, endorsed Trump's candidacy after the former president was injured in an attempted assassination in Pennsylvania. This endorsement marked a departure from the usual self-declared neutrality maintained by social media platform leaders, as reported by The New York Times.
Following the January 6, 2021, attack on Capitol Hill, Trump's account was permanently suspended by Twitter (now X) under its previous ownership. However, under Musk's ownership, the account was reinstated.
According to a Wall Street Journal report, Musk, who also owns SpaceX and Tesla, pledged USD 45 million per month to a new political action committee backing Trump. The America PAC will primarily focus on voter outreach and registration efforts to counter the Democrats' traditionally strong campaigns.
Trump's planned talk with Musk comes after Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris selected Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate.
On August 4, The Washington Post reported that five secretaries of state planned to send an open letter to Musk on Monday, urging him to "immediately implement changes" to X's AI chatbot Grok, after it shared false information suggesting that Kamala Harris was not eligible to appear on the 2024 presidential ballot. The letter, spearheaded by Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon and signed by his counterparts Al Schmidt of Pennsylvania, Steve Hobbs of Washington, Jocelyn Benson of Michigan, and Maggie Toulouse Oliver of New Mexico, urges Musk to ensure voters have accurate information in this critical election year.
