'It will help us': Trump says he's not worried about Elon Musk's new political party
"I think it will help us," Trump told reporters during a July 8 Cabinet meeting. "It will probably help. Third parties have always been good for me. I don't know about Republicans, but for me."
Musk announced the formation of "the American Party" on July 5 after his vocal opposition to Trump's so-called "big, beautiful bill" over debt concerns didn't sway any Republican lawmakers to vote against the bill.
Musk, a former White House adviser who has turned into a top Trump foe, said the new party will 'fight the Republican/Democrat Uniparty," arguing that "when it comes to bankrupting our country" both Democrats and Republicans are the same.
In the 2024 presidential election, Trump allies worked to boost third party candidates Jill Stein of the Green Party, Cornel West and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (before Kennedy bowed out to endorse Trump) to peel off votes from Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee.
More: 'Train wreck': Trump slams Musk after billionaire announces new political party
It's unclear how far Musk is willing to go to mount a third party that can be viable in future elections.
Although he's the word's richest man, Musk would face a labyrinth of different qualifying rules to field candidates in all 50 states during the 2026 congressional midterm elections. And Musk ‒ despised by many on the left and now seemingly a Trump foe ‒ would need to recruit candidates to a party that lacks a clear agenda.
Other recent third parties in the United States, including the Libertarian Party and the Green Party, have not won any congressional seats. The last third-party presidential candidate to mount a serious threat for the White House was Ross Perot, who in 1992 won 19% of the popular votes but carried no states as an independent.
Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.
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