Latest news with #FEC
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
Tesla CFO Vaibhav Taneja named treasurer as Elon Musk launches ‘America Party'
Academy Empower your mind, elevate your skills A federal election commission (FEC) document is being widely shared on social media, revealing that Elon Musk has registered the America Party with the close examination, an Indian-origin name can be found on the document: Vaibhav Taneja, the chief financial officer (CFO) of is listed as the treasurer and custodian of records for Musk's new political party. His appointment to these key roles isn't surprising, considering his deep experience in financial roles and his involvement in Tesla's financial became Tesla's CFO in August 2023. Taneja joined the company in 2017 following its acquisition of SolarCity, where he held a senior finance position. Over the years, he climbed the ranks, starting as assistant corporate controller, then becoming corporate controller, chief accounting officer, and eventually announced on Sunday, that he is launching The America Party, to fight against Trump's 'big, beautiful' tax a post on X, he stated, 'Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom.'He said, 'By a factor of 2 to 1, you want a new political party and you shall have it!'Taneja also made news recently for reportedly earning $139 million in 2024, which is far more than what other big tech executives are earning, including Microsoft's Satya Nadella and Google's Sundar Pichai.
Time of India
12 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
'Yes': Indian-origin investor reveals if there is any 'actual American' in Elon Musk's party amid row over Vaibhav Taneja
Social media users said Elon Musk's America Party has so far no Americans. When Elon Musk announced he would be launching a party for Americans following his fallout with President Donald Trump, critics like Steve Bannon, a former Trump adviser, said that Elon Musk himself is not an American. The FEC filing of the party triggered a new controversy as Indian-origin Vaibhav Taneja, who is the chief financial officer of Tesla, was named as the treasurer of the new party. Social media users said none of the names associated with the America Party are American. While Elon Musk was born in South Africa, Taneja was born in India and though they are US citizens, they are not natural-born US citizens. While it became a laughing stock on social media, another Indian-origin techie and investor, who goes by the name Sidharth on X announced that he is also an official member of the American Party. "Are there any actual Americans in the "American" party?" he was asked. "yes they are just not racist towards fellow Americans," Sidharth wrote, adding that he is an American who employs more fellow Americans. Calling himself the "American dream", Sidharth said the "xenophobic" attack on Indian Americans will backfire spectacularly. "The xenophobic attacks against Indian Americans simply for existing and voicing their opinions will backfire spectacularly. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Mucus in Lungs? Do This if You Feel Breathlessness Neuracare Learn More Undo Everyone involved in this malicious framing of 'The America Party' will have to deal with the severe consequences of their actions," Sidharth wrote. The Indian-origin investor observed that Indian-Americans are not even allowed dual citizenship unlike the Americans of European origin but their loyalty always gets questioned. "Over 50% of Americans of European origin hold dual citizenship, meaning their loyalty is split between the U.S. and another country. Meanwhile, Indian Americans are not even allowed dual citizenship and yet they remain some of the most loyal, law abiding, and committed Americans you'll ever meet. Let that sink in," he wrote.
Daily Mail
12 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Inside Elon Musk's clever plot to undermine Trump as billionaire's breakaway party ignites MAGA fury
The rollercoaster of a relationship between the world's richest man Elon Musk and President Donald Trump has captivated the attention of many political observers over the last yeah, but Musk's latest move could be his boldest. Musk officially filed a Statement of Organization Sunday with the Federal Election Commission for his 'America Party' political party after weeks of threatening the GOP. On July 4th, Musk asked his 221.7 million followers on X if it is time to make good on his threats to create a new political party and oust the Republicans who supported Trump's signature budget bill which narrowly passed through Congress after weeks of debate and different factions of the GOP plotting to the tank the legislation as various points the process. 'One way to execute on this would be to laser-focus on just 2 or 3 Senate seats and 8 to 10 House districts,' he wrote on X. 'Given the razor-thin legislative margins, that would be enough to serve as the deciding vote on contentious laws, ensuring that they serve the true will of the people.' Republicans currently hold slim majorities in both the House and Senate with just a handful of seats giving them the edge over Democrats. Out of 100 seats in the U.S. Senate, 53 are held by Republicans. In the U.S. House of Representatives, 220 seats are held by Republicans and 212 are held by Democrats with three seats presently vacant due to members passing away. Trump's budget bill passed with narrow margins in both chambers last week, with some members of the President's party voting against the legislation. In the Senate, the vote was 51-50, with Vice President JD Vance casting the tie-breaker. Republican Senators Susan Collins of Maine, Rand Paul of Kentucky, and Thom Tillis of North Carolina joined Democrats in opposing the bill. In the House the vote was 218-214. Republicans Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania voted no. Musk and Trump got into a social media war during debate on the legislation, leading to Musk threatening to use his billions to start a third political party and Trump threatening to deport the naturalized American citizen. Last Monday before Trump's bill even passed, Musk escalated his attacks, saying lawmakers who campaigned on cutting spending but supported the bill 'should hang their heads in shame.' 'And they will lose their primary next year if it's the last thing I do on this Earth,' Musk declared. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO also called for a new political party, arguing the bill's massive spending showed 'we live in a one-party country — the PORKY PIG PARTY!' 'Time for a party that actually cares about the people,' he wrote. 'If this insane spending bill passes, the America Party will be formed the next day,' Musk pledged in a post on X Monday evening. Musk, now worth over $400 billion, founded the AmericaPAC super PAC in 2024. AmericaPAC raised more than $260 million last year, much of it to back Republicans in swing districts. Over $88 million went to supporting Trump directly. The Senate version of Trump's bill, which also passed the House on Wednesday, is estimated to add between $3.3 billion and $4.5 billion to the national debt. 'The insane spending of this bill increases the debt ceiling by a record five trillion dollars,' Musk posted. Despite the relative unpalatability of a national third party or independent presidential campaigns, state level races are another story. There is precedent for a third party candidate running in place of a major party candidate, and some have even won. Two seats in the U.S. Senate are presently held by Independents, although those independents caucus with Democrats. Dozens of members of the U.S. Senate have been elected outside of the two major parties throughout the chamber's history. In one other relatively recent example, Independent Greg Orman ran against former GOP Kansas Senator Pat Roberts, albeit unsuccessfully in 2014. Orman managed to pull in 42.5% of the vote as the Democrat party did not field a candidate in the race. Musk was curiously silent in the hours following the congressional vote on Trump's budget bill but, on July 4th, he decided to weigh in: 'Great day for some … fireworks,' he wrote, adding two fire emojis. He also praised Republican Senator Rand Paul and Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, both of Kentucky, for voting against the bill for the amount of money it added to the country's deficit. '100,' the world's richest man wrote using an emoji in support of them. Musk has perviously threatened to primary any GOP lawmaker who voted in favor of Trump's signature legislation. Two Republican lawmakers who spoke to the Daily Mail on Thursday brushed aside Musk's potential threats against GOP members who voted for the big beautiful bill. Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.), a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus brushed off Musk's threats when asked if he thought any members of his conference were worried about any potential retaliation from Musk for their vote. 'No, Elon Musk is for the country. No retaliation' Norman stated. Asked again if he thought his fellow Republicans could get primaried with millions of dollars flowing from Musk, Norman added the following. 'Elon Musk is a true patriot. He identified where our tax money went. For you, young people, you ought to be grateful that we had him.' 'No one else had the bandwidth to do what he did,' Norman noted, referring to Musk's work as Trump's former lead of the Department of Government Efficiency. Musk directly called out a pair of House Republicans who are a part of the conservative 'Freedom Caucus,' for their votes to pass the preliminary House version of the bill back in May. 'How can you call yourself the Freedom Caucus if you vote for a Debt Slavery bill with the biggest debt ceiling increase in history? @RepAndyHarrisMD @chiproytx,' Musk wrote, addressing the two GOP lawmakers directly. Another conservative Republican, Representative John McGuire (R-Va.) told the Daily Mail that he believes Musk is going to move on 'bigger and greater things.' 'I think yesterday, he said more nice things about President Trump,' McGuire added, referring to a recent positive post Musk's made on X, formerly Twitter. In that post, Musk praised Trump's peace making abilities. 'Credit where credit is due. Donald Trump has successfully resolved several serious conflicts around the world,' Musk wrote in a post made at around 1:30 AM Wednesday. McGuire is no stranger to competitive GOP primaries in red seats, as he himself came to Congress after he primaried former Rep. Bob Good, a fellow Republican from the right last year. While members of Congress brushed off Musk's threat's and even further political involvement following the passage of Trump's bill, some of the President's business allies are willing to to go scorched earth on the billionaire. Venture capitalist James Fishback - whose Azoria 500 ETF invests in companies that don't engage in DEI practices - posted on X that he was withdrawing support for Tesla and Elon Musk. Fishback noted that his firm 'decided to postpone next week's public listing of our Azoria Tesla Convexity ETF.' Fishback added that his organization's 'decision comes in direct response to Elon Musk's announcement that he is launching a new national political party.' While nearly all Republicans backed the budget, two conservative lawmakers from Kentucky — Rep. Thomas Massie and Senator Rand Paul — voted no. Massie was already criticized by the Trump White House for opposing the bill, and Musk defended him even before the final vote. It remains to be seen whether Musk's support for Massie was an exception, or a sign he's prepared to oppose Trump in future primaries within the GOP or even have a greater impact with his own political party in it's entirety.
News18
15 hours ago
- Business
- News18
Who Is Vaibhav Taneja, Indian-Origin Tesla CFO Handling Finances For Musk's America Party?
Last Updated: Taneja's official role in Musk's political outfit was confirmed through paperwork submitted to the US Federal Election Commission Indian-American Vaibhav Taneja, currently the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at Tesla, has been named as the Treasurer and Custodian of Records for Elon Musk's newly launched political venture, the America Party. On Saturday, Musk announced the formation of the America Party through a post on his social media platform, X, saying it aimed to 'give Americans their freedom back" and challenge what he called the country's 'one-party system". 'Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom," Musk wrote. 'When it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy," added the billionaire, who heads Tesla and SpaceX. Taneja's official role in Musk's political outfit was confirmed through paperwork submitted to the US Federal Election Commission (FEC), which lists him as both Treasurer and Custodian of Records of the party. 🚨 BREAKING: It's FEC filing under Elon Musk's name just confirmed the creation of a brand new political vehicle, the AMERICA PARTY. The paperwork lists Tesla CFO Vaibhav Taneja as both Treasurer and Custodian of Records. You don't file FEC paperwork unless you're… — Brian Allen (@allenanalysis) July 6, 2025 Who Is Vaibhav Taneja? Vaibhav Taneja is a seasoned financial executive and the current CFO at Tesla. He holds a commerce degree from Delhi University and is a qualified Chartered Accountant from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI). He began his professional career at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in India before moving to the United States in 1999. In March 2016, Taneja joined SolarCity Corporation, a solar energy company, as part of its finance and accounting team. Following Tesla's acquisition of SolarCity in the same year, he transitioned to Tesla in 2017 as Corporate Controller. Taneja rapidly moved up the ranks, becoming Tesla's Chief Accounting Officer in 2019 and eventually taking over as Chief Financial Officer in 2023. With over 17 years of experience across sectors such as technology, retail, and telecom, Taneja is well-versed in US GAAP, SEC filings, and financial audits. He has worked closely with senior executives and board members, helping companies streamline operations, ensure compliance, and reduce revenue leakage. First Published:
Time of India
17 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
'So very American': Indian-origin Vaibhav Taneja listed as treasurer of Elon Musk's America Party
Indian-origin Vaibhav Taneja was listed as the treasurer of Elon Musk's America Party. Indian-origin Vaibhav Taneja was named the treasurer of the America Party in the paperwork that was filed to create Elon Musk's America Party. After teasing a new party to break the two-party system of US politics, Elon Musk Sunday announced the creation of America Party after his fallout with President Donald Trump and the GOP is now complete. According to the FEC form, the party office is at 1 Rocker Road, Hawthorne and Elon Musk's name is mentioned as the single candidate. Vaibhav Taneja is mentioned as the custodian of records and the treasurer and a Texas address is listed as his. FEC form of Elon Musk's America Party. Vaibhav Taneja is the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Tesla, having assumed the role in August 2023 after the departure of Zach Kirkhorn. An Indian-origin executive, Taneja has played a key role in Tesla's accounting and financial operations for several years. He joined Tesla in 2017 through its acquisition of SolarCity, where he was already serving in a senior finance role. Before Tesla, Taneja worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in both India and the United States for nearly 17 years. Known for his low public profile and steady management style, Taneja has helped oversee Tesla's financial strategies during a time of rapid global expansion and increased scrutiny over the company's margins and performance. He holds a commerce degree from Delhi University and is a certified chartered accountant, making him one of the few Indian-origin CFOs at a major American tech company.
