As Donald Trump prepares his return to the White House, one in every of his most omnipresent confidants has been not his working mate or spouse however a fellow brash billionaire, Elon Musk.

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Since campaigning for Trump – with such enthusiasm that Musk actually jumped within the air at a rally – Musk has been a near-constant presence at Trump’s aspect.

The Tesla and SpaceX CEO has joined phone calls with world leaders and distributed recommendation on personnel selections each immediately and publicly by means of X, the social media platform he purchased.

‘First Buddy’

In between his fixed postings of memes of himself and Trump, Musk has even embraced a title urged for his position: “First Buddy.”

When the president-elect triumphantly returned to Washington on Wednesday, tagging alongside aboard his aircraft was Musk, the world’s richest individual, who seems to have spent a lot of the week because the election hobnobbing at Trump’s Florida property, Mar-a-Lago.

Musk, buying and selling his Silicon Valley bro sweatshirts for a crisp and somber black swimsuit, was given a front-row seat amongst Republican House lawmakers who gathered to listen to the president-elect.

“Elon, you’ve been so good,” Trump mentioned, because the elected representatives provided Musk a standing ovation, in keeping with footage posted by a congressman.

On Tuesday, Trump appointed Musk and one other billionaire, former Republican presidential contender Vivek Ramaswamy, to a brand new “Department of Government Efficiency” tasked with trimming down Washington forms.

Musk, who sacked 80 % of Twitter’s workforce when he purchased it and rechristened it as X, vowed in an announcement to “send shockwaves through the system, and anyone involved in government waste.”

Musk has additionally provided recommendation properly outdoors of any outlined lane for him.

He referred to as for the appointment of the president-elect’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump to a US Senate seat anticipated to open up in Florida ought to Marco Rubio turn into secretary of state.

Musk – and never profession diplomats, as can be customary – reportedly joined Trump in calls with the leaders of Turkey and Ukraine, the place Musk’s Starlink has supplied an important supply of communication throughout the conflict.

He additionally has taken to X whereas advising Trump to again efforts to defeat Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Trump’s perilous internal circle

The South Africa-born Musk, who controversially ran a $1 million-a-day sweepstakes in swing states in a transparent bid to draw Trump voters, has to date managed to keep away from blowback from the mercurial president-elect.

Trump has gone as far as to recommend he would put apart a few of his local weather skepticism and again electrical vehicles because of Musk.

The president-elect was mentioned to fume after a first-term consigliere, far-right political strategist Steve Bannon, appeared on the quilt of Time journal and was described because the “second most powerful man in the world.”

Trump ultimately fired him and nicknamed him “Sloppy Steve.”

Musk, whose Tesla vehicles had been standing symbols for rich liberals, has additionally rapidly turn into a lightning rod for criticism from Democrats.

Senator Elizabeth Warren mocked the brand new initiative of Musk and Ramaswamy, writing on X that the hassle for effectivity was “off to a great start with split leadership: two people to do the work of one person.”

Until the most recent election, Musk mentioned he voted for Democrats for president, together with Joe Biden.

The turning level, in keeping with a Wall Street Journal report, was when Biden invited automaker executives to the White House however snubbed Musk as a result of Tesla, in contrast to the Detroit Big Three, shouldn’t be unionized.

Whatever the causes, Musk’s political transformation has paid off with entry unimaginable with most presidents.

On Election Night, a beaming Trump gathered his household collectively for an image at Mar-a-Lago. His spouse Melania was lacking however, at Trump’s urging, into the image got here Musk, one in every of his dozen youngsters in his arms.

How lengthy does the Elon Musk-Donald Trump friendship final?

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By Garrin Lambley © Agence France-Presse