Prominent right-wing podcaster Steve Bannon took aim at billionaire Elon Musk, saying the world's wealthiest man has "masters in Beijing" during a Saturday episode of his WarRoom podcast.
Newsweek reached out to the press offices of Musk's companies SpaceX and Tesla for comment via email.
Why It Matters
Bannon, who served as the CEO of Donald Trump's 2016 campaign as well as a White House adviser in his former administration, and Musk, who donated over a quarter billion dollars to help get the president-elect across the finish line in 2024, are two of the Republican leader's top allies. However, Bannon has long been critical of Musk, and routinely criticized his business ties to China.
The podcaster has previously called Musk a "stone cold liar" and said "his paymasters" are from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). In a recent interview with Semafor, Bannon said that he and Musk disagree on "just about everything."
What to Know
On Saturday, Bannon discussed how Musk has said he will change the algorithm on X, formerly Twitter, to reduce "negativity." Musk purchased X and has run the company since October 2022.
A recent X update announcement explains that Musk aims to tweak the algorithm "to penalize 'negativity' while promoting content that is informational and entertaining. Musk's goal is to enhance user experience by increasing what he refers to as 'unregretted user-seconds.'"
Bannon suggested Musk was exhibiting hypocrisy after previously saying that he'd make X a beacon of free speech. The right-wing podcaster said the billionaire was taking a cue from the CCP.
"Elon Musk—he can't take a punch. And he's certainly got a glass jaw," Bannon said. He also took aim at Musk for saying he'd reduce negativity on the platform, noting that the billionaire himself had made incendiary comments about his critics.
"He's using a social credit score," Bannon said. "He's using it from his masters in Beijing—have taught him through the Shanghai joint venture, of how to use social credit scores."
China's so-called "social credit" system has drawn substantial criticism in the West. Beijing's end goal is to establish a master database, a blacklisting system, and a reward and punishment instrument that can be applied nationwide, with the aim of measuring trust in society, government, the judiciary, finance and commerce.
Bannon's remarks referenced Musk's business operations in China. Tesla, in which Musk is the CEO of, announced in mid-2018 that it had "signed a Cooperative Agreement for Tesla to start building Gigafactory 3, a new electric vehicle manufacturing facility in Shanghai." The Chinese factory's operations have substantially boosted the company's productivity and value to investors.
Additionally, Musk often praises China's technological advancements, including the country's space program, infrastructure and renewable energy. In 2019, he was offered permanent residency in the country after visiting and saying, "I love China and want to come here more often."
In December, Musk came out against the bipartisan spending bill that would avert a government shutdown, with some lawmakers suggesting he was against it due to the provisions on China.
The original bill would have prohibited or required notification of overseas transactions involving China in sectors like semiconductors, quantum technology and artificial intelligence. It also would have included an expanded review of Chinese real estate purchases near national security-sensitive sites and a requirement to study national security risks posed by Chinese-made consumer modems and routers.
The final version of the bill removed all China-related provisions.
What People Are Saying
Right-wing influencer Laura Loomer, who has repeatedly accused Musk of censorship, told Newsweek this past week: "I just kind of want to know why they're allowing for the Trump base to be completely censored. The Trump base is up in arms over this, and nobody's doing anything to speak out about this egregious censorship."
Elon Musk said on December 26: "Just a reminder that the algorithm is trying to maximize unregretted user-seconds. If far more credible, verified subscriber accounts (not bots) mute/block your account compared to those who like your posts, your reach will decline significantly."
Nick Fuentes, a far-right white supremacist who lost his X verification, wrote on the platform Tuesday: "Twitter censorship is back. Free speech is dead."
What Happens Next
While Bannon largely refrained from criticizing Musk as he funded Trump's 2024 presidential campaign, his criticism of the billionaire has ramped up in recent weeks. The two have been particularly at odds over Musk's support for H-1B visas for skilled foreign workers, which Bannon and other Trump allies oppose. That fight played out publicly during the Christmas holiday, with Trump ultimately saying he supports the visas.
How the disagreements between the two prominent Trump allies play out moving forward remains to be seen. Bannon appears to be more in line with much of the president-elect's base, but Musk's significant financial resources will likely weigh heavily on Trump and Republicans moving forward.
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