Tesla CEO and We do. Photo courtesy: Reuters
Elon Musk held his first solo event in support donald trump On Thursday (Oct. 17, 2024), voters in the Philadelphia suburbs were encouraged to cast their ballots and register to vote early, though some attendees shouted, “Why?”
The America Political Action Committee (PAC) event at the Ridley High School auditorium in Folsom featured the world’s richest man speaking on stage in front of a large American flag for about 15 minutes before asking questions from the crowd, including Many wore “Make America Great Again.” “Cap.
The event was presented as a call to action for early voting important battleground state of pennsylvaniaWhere Mr. Trump and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris Contesting the elections fiercely. Some in the crowd questioned Musk’s intentions to vote early, raising the possibility that Republicans are still trying to convince their supporters to vote early, as Mr. Trump has spent years vilifying the method. Had spent.
As Musk, the billionaire founder of Tesla and SpaceX and owner of social media platform They stood during his remarks and gave a loud cheer when he said the U.S. Constitution needed to be preserved.
“These are truly the fundamental values that made America what it is today. And anyone who is against those things is basically anti-American and to hell with them,” said Musk, who was born in South Africa. The crowd erupted.
He encouraged the crowd to make sure they and their friends and family were registered to vote and to “harass” those who were not. At the end of question period, which included more than a dozen people from the audience, he was asked to state whether people should vote early in Pennsylvania. Musk was momentarily distracted by a fan waving a hat, which he appeared to sign, and then by a child, whom he brought on stage for a photo.
Redirecting the question he said people should vote immediately.
Some in the crowd raised their hands and shouted, “Why?” He did not answer. A spokesperson said after the program that he had no additional comment.
Mr. Trump has stoked skepticism about mail and early voting by claiming for years that it is rife with fraud, even though voter fraud is rare in the United States. This year, Republicans are making renewed efforts to encourage their supporters to vote early and lock up their ballots, even as they acknowledge the skepticism generated by Mr. Trump’s false claims.
John and Linda Byrd, a couple who attended the event, said they were concerned about the integrity of the voting system and were concerned about early voting.
John Byrd said he planned to vote on Election Day. Linda pointed to a sign at the event that said Mr. Trump had called for early voting and was concerned about the possibility of not voting on November 5.
Nevertheless, she said she would still cast her ballot on Election Day.
“Anything can happen, you know, you wake up that morning, some disaster happens or whatever,” she said. “But, you know, we plan to vote on November 5, 2024.”
One of the questioners asked about election fraud — something Mr. Trump has falsely claimed cost him the 2020 race. An Associated Press review of every possible case of voter fraud in the six states contested by Mr. Trump found fewer than 475, a number that would not have made a difference to the outcome.
Musk sarcastically said it would be a coincidence that Dominion voting machines, which were at the center of conspiracy theories in the 2020 election, were used in Philadelphia and Maricopa County, Arizona, two battleground states won by Democrat Joe Biden. Was done. In 2023, Fox News agreed to pay Dominion Voting Systems $787 million to settle a defamation lawsuit that the voting machine company brought against the network for lying about its company altering ballots. Was.
In an email statement Thursday (Oct. 17, 2024), Dominion said its machines are not used in Philadelphia, as Musk said. The statement also said its systems are based on “verified paper ballots.”
“These are not matters of opinion. These are verifiable facts.” Dominion said.
Musk has become a key supporter of Mr Trump this campaign season. On Thursday (October 17, 2024) evening, he created a ruckus in the elections.
“I have not been politically active before. I’m politically active now because I think the future of America and the future of civilization is at stake,” he said.
People were standing in queue to attend as the school was dismissed before 3 pm. When it became clear that not everyone standing in the queue to ask questions would get a chance to ask questions, some people started leaving early.
The event was livestreamed on X, formerly Twitter, and was at times garbled and difficult to follow, even though it attracted hundreds of thousands of viewers.
Musk is making most of his efforts to get out votes for Mr. Trump through his America PAC, a super PAC that can raise and spend unlimited amounts of money. He has pledged more than $70 million to a super PAC to help Mr. Trump and other Republicans win in November.
Mr Trump and the Republican National Committee he controls opted for an unconventional strategy of sharing campaign duties in key areas with groups like Musk. They have focused their efforts not on independent or liberal voters but on those who already support Mr. Trump but do not typically vote.
Republican activists in swing states said in September that they had seen little activity from the PAC’s get-out-the-vote efforts.
published – October 18, 2024 08:32 am IST