Senator Cory Booker says he will not accept any donations from Elon Musk
A leading elected Democrat rejected the idea of taking campaign donations from tech billionaire Elon Musk, whose spectacular fallout with former ally Donald Trump has roiled American politics.
Trump on Saturday said Musk will face 'serious consequences' if he moves to support Democratic political candidates in any upcoming elections, following a public rift between the two men over Musk's staunch opposition to the cost of US president's planned piece of landmark domestic legislation.
But Cory Booker, a senator for New Jersey, scotched any idea he would take any Musk cash. 'I would not accept money from Elon Musk for my campaign,' Booker told NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday.
But Booker added, referring to the Republicans budget bill that Musk has criticized, 'I would be supportive of anybody, including Elon Musk, putting resources forward right now to let more Americans know, sound the alarm, treat this like a Paul Revere moment.'
Booker added: 'More Americans have to understand that if this bill passes, average Americans are going to see their costs skyrocket as this president again pushes legislation that is indicative of his chaos, corruption and cruelty towards Americans.'
The senator's comments come as Democrats wrestle with the how to turn the dramatic fallout between Musk and Trump into opportunity. Musk turned his back on the party in 2022 and contributed $270m to Trump's re-election campaign in 2024, providing crucial help in the Republican's eventual victory.
As the Trump-Musk feud intensified on Thursday, Musk posted on X: 'In November next year, we fire all politicians who betrayed the American people.,' clearly referring to any politician who supported Trump's budget bill.
Ro Khanna, a Democratic congressman, reportedly talked with one of Musk's 'senior confidants' on last week about whether Musk might now want to help the Democrats in the midterm elections next year.
'Having Elon speak out against the irrational tariff policy, against the deficit exploding Trump bill, and the anti-science and anti-immigrant agenda can help check Trump's unconstitutional administration,' Khanna told Semafor.
'I look forward to Elon turning his fire against Maga Republicans instead of Democrats in 2026,' Khanna, who has argued that his party was unwise to alienate Musk, told the outlet.
However, leftwing politicians, including Vermont senator Bernie Sanders and New York congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, have publicly pictured Musk as what voters should be against: powerful wealthy billionaires seeking influence through politics.
Sanders told CNN's State of the Union Sunday that Musk had 'evolved' into an extremist since he voted for Obama in 2008.
'Over the years he has developed into a rightwing extremist. The issue and drama over what happened last week is that we are living, increasingly, in an oligarchic society. Musk said: 'Hey listen, I spent $270m dollars to get you elected. I bought you the presidency …'
'This is a fight between oligarchs. It's a fight about power among the few, and it's really an embarrassment for those of us who believe in democracy and the rule of law,' Sanders added.
Musk said last month that he planned to spend 'a lot less' on political campaigns as he scaled back and ultimately exited his time in government, where Trump had tasked him with massively slashing federal spending and jobs.
'In terms of political spending I'm going to do a lot less in the future,' Musk told a Bloomberg forum in Doha. Asked why, he responded: 'I think I've done enough.'
But Musk's opposition to Trump's 'One Big Beautiful' bill budget proposal, calling it an 'disgusting abomination', by definition puts him in relative proximity to Democratic positions on that issue.
Booker was asked if agreed with Musk about the planned legislation that Trump has made a centerpiece of his administration. 'I agree that it's going to saddle this country with trillions of dollars of debt, endanger our entire economy … This is a morally wrong bill. And it's definitely, definitely an economically wrong bill as well.'
'This is not about right or left, it's about right or wrong,' he added. 'And I welcome Elon Musk, not to my campaign. I welcome him right now, not to sit back and just fire off tweets, to get involved right now in a more substantive way and putting pressure on congresspeople and senators to not do this.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
20 minutes ago
- Reuters
Musk's father says Elon made a mistake 'under stress' and that Trump will prevail
MOSCOW, June 9 (Reuters) - The row between Elon Musk, the world's richest man, and U.S. President Donald Trump was triggered by stress on both sides and Elon made a mistake by publicly challenging Trump, Musk's father told Russian media in Moscow. Musk and Trump began exchanging insults last week on social media with Musk denouncing the president's sweeping tax and spending bill as a "disgusting abomination." "You know they have been under a lot of stress for five months - you know - give them a break," Errol Musk told the Izvestia newspaper during a visit to the Russian capital. "They are very tired and stressed so you can expect something like this." "Trump will prevail - he's the president, he was elected as the president. So, you know, Elon made a mistake, I think. But he is tired, he is stressed." Errol Musk also suggested that the row "was just a small thing" and would "be over tomorrow." Neither the White House nor Musk could be reached for comment outside normal U.S. business hours. Trump said on Saturday his relationship with billionaire donor Musk was over and warned there would be "serious consequences" if Musk decided to fund U.S. Democrats running against Republicans who vote for the tax and spending bill. Musk, the world's richest man, bankrolled a large part of Trump's 2024 presidential campaign. Trump named Musk to head a controversial effort to downsize the federal workforce and slash spending.
Telegraph
23 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Stocks rally ahead of US-China trade talks in London
Stock markets jumped in Asia ahead of US-China trade talks due to get under way in Britain today. Shares were up from Hong Kong to Tokyo following a call late last week between US president Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping. Representatives from the world's two largest economies are due to meet at a still undisclosed location in London in an attempt to revive a preliminary trade agreement reached in Geneva last month. The US delegation will be led by treasury secretary Scott Bessent, commerce secretary Howard Lutnick and US trade representative Jamieson Greer. The Chinese contingent will be helmed by vice premier He Lifeng. Relations soured earlier this month after President Trump accused China of violating the terms of the deal. Beijing accused Washington of doing the same. Latest updates 09 June 2025 8:15am 8:15AM Government borrowing costs fall amid trade hopes The cost of government borrowing edged lower in Britain ahead of the talks between top US and Chinese trade officials in London. The yield on 10-year UK gilts – a benchmark for the cost of servicing the national debt – declined two basis points to 4.62pc on bond markets. Yields were also lower across the eurozone after the European Central Bank last week cut interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point to 2pc, as expected. Germany's 10-year bund yield was down nearly three basis points to 2.54pc. 8:06AM UK stocks muted ahead of trade talks The FTSE 100 opened slightly higher as the US and China prepare to hold trade talks in London. The UK's blue-chip stock index climbed 0.1pc to 8,845.73 while the mid-cap FTSE 250 was flat at 21,159.10. 8:03AM Trump says China talks 'should go very well' Donald Trump said the talks in London 'should go very well'. The negotiations come just a few days after the US president and Xi Jinping finally held their first publicly announced telephone talks since the Republican returned to the White House. Trump said the call, which took place on Thursday, had reached a 'very positive conclusion.' Xi was quoted by state-run news agency Xinhua as saying that 'correcting the course of the big ship of Sino-US relations requires us to steer well and set the direction'. The call came after tensions between the world's two biggest economies had soared, with Trump accusing Beijing of violating a tariff de-escalation deal reached in Geneva in mid-May. Mr Trump's press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, told Fox News on Sunday: 'We want China and the United States to continue moving forward with the agreement that was struck in Geneva.' 7:46AM China export growth plunges as Trump tariffs bite China's export growth slowed to a three-month low in May as US tariffs hit shipments. Total exports from the world's second largest economy expanded by 4.8pc year-on-year last month, down from 8.1pc in April and below analyst expectations of 5pc, according to customs data. China's exports to the US plunged by 34.5pc in the sharpest drop since the outbreak of the Covid pandemic in February 2020. Imports dropped 3.4pc, deepening sharply from the 0.2pc decline in April, despite the trade deal agreed between Beijing and Washington in Geneva at the start of last month. Zichun Huang of Capital Economics said: 'The slowdown in export growth in May should partially reverse this month, as it reflects the drop in US orders before the trade truce, which took time to feed through to actual shipments. 'But with tariffs likely to remain elevated and Chinese manufacturers facing broader constraints on their ability to sustain rapid gains in global market share, we think export growth will slow further by year-end.' Exports YoY in China decreased to 4.80 percent in May from 8.10 percent in April of 2025. — TRADING ECONOMICS (@tEconomics) June 9, 2025 7:35AM Trade war 'in nobody's interests' says UK Government Top US and Chinese officials will sit down in London today for talks aimed at defusing the high-stakes trade dispute between the two superpowers. Their trade war has deepened in recent weeks beyond tit-for-tat tariffs to export controls over goods and components critical to global supply chains. At a still-undisclosed venue in London, the two sides will try to get back on track with a preliminary agreement struck last month in Geneva. The US delegation will be led by treasury secretary Scott Bessent, commerce secretary Howard Lutnick and US trade representative Jamieson Greer. The Chinese contingent will be helmed by vice premier He Lifeng. A UK Government spokesman said: 'The next round of trade talks between the US and China will be held in the UK on Monday. 'We are a nation that champions free trade and have always been clear that a trade war is in nobody's interests, so we welcome these talks.' 7:22AM FTSE 100 on track to open flat Investors in Europe appear more sceptical about the prospects of the US-China trade talks kicking off in London today. The FTSE 100, France's Cac 40 and Germany's Dax are all on track to open flat when trading gets underway later. Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, said: 'Asian stocks are rallying at the start of the week; however, European equity futures and US futures are taking a breather and are pointing to a slightly lower open later today.' She added: 'Stocks may need a new driver to extend last week's rally after investors scaled back their expectations for Federal Reserve interest rates cuts for this year. There are less than two cuts priced in by the Fed Fund Futures market by the end of this year. 'The number of rate cuts from the Fed could be determined by the outlook for US inflation, which is released later this week. As the growth data remain unaffected by tariffs for now, inflation could hold the key for US monetary policy.' 7:15AM Good morning Thanks for joining me. Asian stock markets rallied overnight in the lead up to fresh trade talks between the US and China which will kick off in London later. Here is what you need to know. 5 things to start your day 1) Ukraine plots fracking revolution | Ukraine is working to unleash natural gas fracking with the goal of becoming a major exporter and revolutionising Europe's energy market 2) John Lewis to slim down staff committee to accelerate decisions | Retail giant to cut size of partnership council to 43 in bid to boost turnaround 3) British manufacturing is dying before our eyes | Labour needs to take bold action to lower energy costs in this week's industrial strategy 4) How £7 pints are destroying Britain's pubs | Rising costs are forcing beleaguered publicans to raise prices, driving cash-strapped customers away 5) Lawyer who acted for Gerry Adams to pursue chatbots for libel | The high-profile media lawyer who represented Gerry Adams in his libel trial against the BBC is now preparing to sue the world's most powerful AI chatbots for defamation. What happened overnight Shares rose in Asia ahead of the second round of trade talks between Washington and Beijing, due later today in London. In South Korea, the Kospi added 1.9pc to 2,865.52. Chinese markets rose even though the government reported that exports slowed in May, growing 4.8pc from a year earlier after a jump of more than 8pc in April. Exports to the United States fell nearly 10pc compared with a year earlier. China also reported that consumer prices fell 0.1pc in May from a year earlier, marking the fourth consecutive month of deflation. Hong Kong's Hang Seng picked up 1.4pc to 24,119.64 while the Shanghai Composite Index climbed 0.4pc to 3,397.13. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 gained 1.1pc to 38,137.09 as the government reported that the Japanese economy contracted by 0.2pc in the January-March quarter. Australia's market was closed for a public holiday. On Friday, stocks gained ground on Wall Street following a better-than-expected report on the US job market. The gains were broad, with every sector in the S&P 500 rising. That solidified a second consecutive winning week for the benchmark index, which has rallied back from a slump two months ago to come within striking distance of its record high. The S&P 500 rose 1pc to 6,000.36. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1pc to 42,762.87 while the Nasdaq gained 1.2pc, to 19,529.95.
BBC News
25 minutes ago
- BBC News
LA protests: British photographer hit by non-lethal bullet
A British news photographer has undergone emergency surgery after being hit by a non-lethal bullet while documenting the stand-off between police and protesters in the US city of Los Stern was covering protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) protests when he said a 14mm "sponge bullet" tore into his thigh."Some of the protesters came and helped me, and they ended up carrying me, and I noticed that there was blood pouring down my leg," he against immigration raids have been raging in LA for three days, with protests on Sunday erupting outside a Home Depot store in Paramount, south of LA. Stern, who relocated to the US in 2007, told PA he was treated by a medic who urged him to go to hospital, adding that at one point he passed out from the is now recovering at Long Beach Memorial Medical Centre following emergency said he typically makes himself "as visible as possible" while working in hostile situations."That way you're less likely to get hit because they know you're media," he his injury, Stern said he was eager to return to work. "I intend, as soon as I am well enough, to get back out there," he said."This is too important and it needs documenting."An Australian journalist, Lauren Tomasi, was also struck by a rubber bullet, shot by a police officer, while filming a piece to camera in LA for 9 News, with the incident captured on video. Since his return to the White House, US President Donald Trump has promised mass deportations of undocumented made by Ice officers have increased during Trump's second said he had deployed 2,000 National Guard troops to California to deal with the unrest over the immigration raids, saying the federal government would "step in and solve the problem".But the Democratic governor of California has appealed to Trump to pull National Guard units out of the city, accusing the White House of inflaming tensions. Stern said: "The communities in LA are very tight and very close-knit."So an outside organisation like Ice coming in and removing - whatever you want to call it, removing, kidnapping, abducting people from the community - is not going to go down well at all."Stern said he had also sustained injuries after being hit by live non-lethal rounds while covering protests in LA in 2020 in the aftermath of George Floyd's Floyd - an unarmed Black man - was killed during an arrest by white police officer Derek Chauvin in 2020. Chauvin was sentenced to 22 years in jail for his murder.
