Elon Musk on March 27 defended his accusation that US Sen. Mark Kelly, a Democrat from Arizona, is a “traitor.”
Musk called Kelly a “traitor” earlier in the month after he reaffirmed his support for Ukraine and paid a visit to the war-torn country. Kelly — a combat Navy veteran and retired astronaut — has been a staunch supporter of Ukraine since Russia invaded the country more than three years ago.
Fox News’ Bret Baier pressed Musk on Special Report why he would call Kelly a traitor on social media platform X.
“Well, I think somebody should care about the interests of the United States above the interest of another country, and if they don’t, they’re a traitor,” Musk said.
When Baier noted that Kelly is a decorated war veteran, a former astronaut and a US senator, Musk doubled down.
“That doesn’t mean it’s OK for him to put the interests of another country above America,” Musk responded.
Kelly responded to Musk’s comments on CNN later on March 27, saying he is not sure if Musk even “deserves a response.” Kelly emphasized that he has spent “an entire career standing up for our country, defending our country, flying in combat over Iraq, flying in space on the space shuttle, serving in the United States Senate.”
“And I always stand with the best interest of our nation. And I will tell you this, Erin, standing with our allies and standing up for democracy is in the best interest of the United States … I mean, who is Elon standing with at this point? A bunch of billionaires,” he told CNN’s Erin Burnett.
He went on to slam Musk for laying off thousands of workers through the Department of Government Efficiency.
“And he’s an unelected, unexperienced, inexperienced, at least when it comes to … the federal government and what he’s trying to accomplish here. He’s an unelected billionaire. And I think he needs to stay in his own lane making rockets, making cars. He also might be a little upset that I sold his car,” he added.
Earlier in the month, Musk called Kelly a “traitor” after he made a statement supporting Ukraine. Kelly fired back at Musk, suggesting that Musk should stop interfering with the government.
“Traitor? Elon, if you don’t understand that defending freedom is a basic tenet of what makes America great and keeps us safe, maybe you should leave it to those of us who do,” Kelly wrote on X.
—Lauren Sforza, nj.com (TNS)
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