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Elon Musk deletes X-post saying “nobody” tried to assassinate Biden or Harris

Elon Musk said his now-deleted X-post about how “nobody is even trying to assassinate President Joe Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris” was intended as a joke.

The tech billionaire's comment came after what the FBI described as an “apparent” assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump on Sunday. Shots were fired near Trump as he was at his golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida. The suspect was taken into custody and charged with two counts: possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and possession of a firearm with a defaced serial number. In July, a gunman was killed after shooting Trump in the ear in an assassination attempt during a rally in Pennsylvania.

Musk, who owns X, had posted a response to a user's question: “Why do they want to kill Donald Trump?” Musk, who took over X – then Twitter – in October 2022, is known for spreading debunked conspiracy theories on the platform. He was also a staunch Trump supporter.

His comment, which some users viewed as a form of hate speech and others described as inaccurate, drew strong reactions on the platform, with some using the hashtag “#DeportElonMusk” to denounce Tesla and SpaceX. CEO. Musk is an immigrant to the United States from South Africa and is highly critical of U.S. immigration and border policies.

Critics, including technology journalists Kara Swisher focused her criticism on Musk's collaboration with the U.S. government. “He's a defense contractor, has a national security clearance, and tweets calls for violence. He needs a visit from the authorities ASAP,” Swisher wrote in a post on Threads, sharing an image of Musk's tweet and referring to his alleged government security clearance.

On Monday, Musk wrote after deleting the original post: “One lesson I've learned is that just because I say something to a group and they laugh at it doesn't mean it's going to be as funny as a post on X.”

“It turns out that jokes are MUCH less funny when people don't know the context and they're just delivered as plain text,” he wrote in a second post on X.

Musk and X did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Monday.

A White House spokesman called any jokes about assassination attempts on politicians “irresponsible.”

“As President Biden and Vice President Harris said after yesterday's disturbing news, 'There is no place for political violence, or for violence at all, in our country,' and 'we must all do our part to ensure that this incident does not lead to further violence.' Violence should only be condemned, never encouraged or joked about,” the spokesman said in a statement. “This rhetoric is irresponsible.”

Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate, and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, both condemned what the FBI called an apparent “assassination attempt” on Trump. Biden said he was relieved that Trump was unharmed.

Musk also responded on Monday to a post by Donald Trump Jr. on X about the former president.

“The incitement of hatred and violence against President Trump by the media and leading Democrats must stop,” Musk wrote.

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