{"id":2389671,"date":"2025-01-13T13:44:02","date_gmt":"2025-01-13T18:44:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/steve-bannon-and-elon-musk-feud-to-be-influential-first-buddy\/"},"modified":"2025-01-13T13:46:24","modified_gmt":"2025-01-13T18:46:24","slug":"steve-bannon-and-elon-musk-feud-to-be-influential-first-buddy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/steve-bannon-and-elon-musk-feud-to-be-influential-first-buddy\/","title":{"rendered":"Steve Bannon and Elon Musk feud to be influential &#8216;first buddy&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fsteve-bannon-and-elon-musk-feud-to-be-influential-first-buddy%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2389671&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses the feud between Steve Bannon and Elon Musk, two influential figures vying for the attention of President-elect Donald Trump regarding\u200c immigration\u2062 policies for his second term. Bannon, a pivotal advisor during \u2064Trump\u2019s 2016 campaign\u2063 and his\u2062 first term, has seen his influence diminish since his departure from the \u2064White House and a\u200d brief imprisonment. Conversely, Musk has gained prominence as a close \u200dally of Trump, frequently enough referred to as Trump&#8217;s &#8220;first buddy.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>Despite\u200c Musk&#8217;s initial cooperation with \u2063Trump, he has been critical of Bannon, who has expressed disdain for Musk&#8217;s South African roots, labeling Musk as &#8220;evil&#8221; and suggesting his background lends a racist perspective. The tension has also intensified around \u2064their differing views on H-1B \u200cvisas, with Musk advocating \u2063for these visas to bolster \u200cthe U.S. workforce, \u2063while Bannon opposes\u200d them.<\/p>\n<p>Their clashes highlight the\u2064 contrasting ideologies: Musk\u2019s pragmatic, libertarian approach versus Bannon&#8217;s hardline right-wing perspective. Despite occasional compliments Bannon has given Musk, their ongoing rivalry indicates a important struggle for\u2062 influence \u200bwithin Trump&#8217;s inner circle\u200d as he prepares for his \u2064upcoming term.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Bannon and Musk feud to be influential &lsquo;first buddy&rsquo; who has Trump&rsquo;s ear<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1871394\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/steve-bannon\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Steve Bannon<\/a> intensified his war with <a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/elon-musk\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Elon Musk<\/a> as the two men compete over who will gain President-elect <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Donald Trump<\/a>&lsquo;s ear on immigration issues during his second term in office.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>A&nbsp;senior adviser to Trump&rsquo;s 2016 presidential campaign and subsequent first term in office, Bannon was widely viewed as one of the most powerful people in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-cant-deny-responsibility-for-our-so-so-divided-nation\/\" title=\"Biden Can\u2019t Deny Responsibility For Our \u2018So, So Divided\u2019 Nation\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mike-kelly-same-people-criticizing-trump-peddled-russia-collusion-hoax\/\" title=\"Mike Kelly: Same People Criticizing Trump Peddled Russia Collusion Hoax\">president-elect<\/a>&#038;rsquo<\/a>;s orbit before his sharp fall from grace in 2017. In recent months, Musk has similarly assumed the role of top Trump ally, while the president-elect has harshly criticized Bannon as someone who&nbsp;&ldquo;doesn&rsquo;t represent my base&rdquo; and has &ldquo;lost his mind.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Still, Bannon, who generally remains a Trump zealot, attempted to reassert his dominance over the incoming administration during a recent interview with the Italian newspaper <em>Corriere della Sera<\/em>, pledging to &ldquo;have Elon Musk run out of here by Inauguration Day.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;He is a truly evil guy, a very bad guy,&rdquo; Bannon said. &ldquo;I made it my personal thing to take this guy down.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>He continued to suggest Musk was racist, citing his South African roots.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;He should go back to South Africa,&rdquo; Bannon said. &ldquo;Why do we have South Africans, the most racist people on Earth, white South Africans, we have them making any comments at all on what goes on in the United States?&rdquo;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Bannon: We don&rsquo;t need white guys from South Africa like Thiel, Sacks, and Musk lecturing us on how things should be. That country doesn&rsquo;t have the greatest track record, and I don&rsquo;t need a South African calling the U.S. workforce &ldquo;retarded.&rdquo; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/jZ15UC9Ulo\">pic.twitter.com\/jZ15UC9Ulo<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Bannon&rsquo;s WarRoom (@Bannons_WarRoom) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Bannons_WarRoom\/status\/1874154892513992933?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 31, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script> <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Although the two men have both gained coveted access to Trump&rsquo;s inner circle, they are opposites in many ways. Musk tends toward a pragmatic outlook with a libertarian streak, while Bannon is known as a hard-line right-wing ideologue.<\/p>\n<p>The two have both known the president-elect for years, but Bannon&rsquo;s power has waned even as Musk&rsquo;s &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3220408\/musk-gamble-hits-big-time-star-born\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">star<\/a>,&rdquo; as Trump put it, has risen. <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Where&rsquo;s my Steve? Where&rsquo;s my Steve?&rdquo; the president-elect <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2017\/jul\/18\/devils-bargain-joshua-green-steve-bannon-trump-election-win\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">reportedly<\/a> said of Bannon years ago, illustrating his reliance on the man who served as the mastermind behind his 2016 campaign and first presidential victory. All that evaporated when Bannon lost his job in the White House and spent a<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/3206871\/steve-bannon-released-federal-prison\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"> short stint<\/a> in prison last year after being found in contempt of Congress.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Musk has become one of the most powerful players in Trumpworld, sometimes being described as the president-elect&rsquo;s &ldquo;first buddy.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Trump&rsquo;s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, made the description during an interview with the <em>New York Post<\/em> earlier this month, saying, &ldquo;Who wouldn&rsquo;t want one of the brightest minds of our time in the circle of people doing the right thing for this country?&rdquo; <\/p>\n<p>The bromance has unfolded since Trump first tapped Musk to serve on an economic&nbsp;advisory board&nbsp;in December 2016. Their relationship developed after Musk notably fought against Trump&rsquo;s 2017 ban on people from seven Muslim-majority countries traveling to the United States, a policy that Bannon engineered.<\/p>\n<p>The travel ban is just one of the harsh disagreements Bannon and Musk have had in the past. Bannon&rsquo;s attack on Musk in 2023 over the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/blade-runner-2049-studio-sues-elon-musk-claims-his-rhetoric-veers-into-hate-speech\/\" title=\"&#039;Blade Runner 2049&#039; Studio Sues Elon Musk, Claims His Rhetoric &#039;Veers Into Hate Speech&#039;\">tech mogul&#038;rsquo<\/a>;s factories in China exemplified their combative worldviews.<\/p>\n<p>The two have not always clashed, however.&nbsp;In mid-December 2024, Bannon <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3261434\/steve-bannon-urges-trump-show-no-mercy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">called <\/a>Musk &ldquo;brilliant,&rdquo; praising him for his leadership role in the Department of Government Efficiency after Trump tapped him to spearhead the task force to cut bureaucratic waste. He has also lauded the work Musk did to campaign for Trump during the 2024 presidential election.<\/p>\n<p>However,&nbsp;their feud erupted again in late December, largely over disagreements on H-1B visas.<\/p>\n<p>Musk has backed the visas, saying they are necessary to supplement alarming deficiencies within the U.S. workforce and have helped power massive U.S. companies, including his own businesses &mdash; SpaceX and Tesla. He and other top Trump allies, including Vivek Ramaswamy, have argued that the visas are necessary because the country&rsquo;s cultural &ldquo;mediocrity&rdquo; has led to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/education\/3270525\/ramaswamy-claims-american-culture-mediocrity-excellence-too-long\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">systemic decline<\/a> in U.S. workers choosing to <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">pursue highly skilled careers<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">The reason top tech companies often hire foreign-born &amp; first-generation engineers over &ldquo;native&rdquo; Americans isn&rsquo;t because of an innate American IQ deficit (a lazy &amp; wrong explanation). A key part of it comes down to the c-word: culture. Tough questions demand tough answers &amp; if&hellip;<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/VivekGRamaswamy\/status\/1872312139945234507?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 26, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script> <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>&ldquo;The reason I&rsquo;m in America along with so many critical people who built SpaceX, Tesla and hundreds of other companies that made America strong is because of H1B,&rdquo; Musk said on Dec. 27. &ldquo;Take a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/simone-biles-out-of-gymnastics-team-final-in-tokyo\/\" title=\"Simone Biles Out Of Gymnastics Team Final In Tokyo\">big step back<\/a> and F*** YOURSELF in the face. I will go to war on this issue the likes of which you cannot comprehend.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>While Bannon has criticized the policy over concerns that it could undermine U.S. citizens and bring down their wages, Trump has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/immigration\/3271657\/trump-backs-musk-and-ramaswamy-on-h-1b-visas\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">embraced<\/a> Musk&rsquo;s argument that the visas fill critical skills gaps in the American workforce.<\/p>\n<p>As far back as November 2015, Trump <a href=\"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/breitbart\/breitbart-news-daily-donald-trump-november-2-2015\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">pushed back<\/a> on Bannon&rsquo;s support for forcing foreign students attending U.S. schools to return to their home countries.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We have to be careful of that, Steve,&rdquo; Trump said during a podcast appearance with Bannon. &ldquo;You know, we have to keep our talented people in this country. I think you agree with that &mdash; do you agree with that?&rdquo;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">President Donald Trump talks with Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, center, and White House chief strategist Steve Bannon, left, during a meeting with business leaders on Friday, Feb. 3, 2017, in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo\/Evan Vucci)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Bannon was hesitant.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;When two-thirds or three-quarters of the CEOs in Silicon Valley are from South Asia or from Asia, I think &hellip; a country is more than an economy,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re a civic society.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>During a March 2016 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vox.com\/policy-and-politics\/2017\/2\/2\/14472404\/steve-bannon-legal-immigration-problem\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">interview <\/a>with Stephen Miller, a fellow immigration hawk and top adviser to Trump, Bannon again expressed deep skepticism about H-1B visas, saying that &ldquo;engineering schools full of people from South Asia and East Asia&rdquo; were stealing jobs from U.S. students.<\/p>\n<p>It was those concerns that Bannon posited opposite Musk during a podcast interview in late December. Ripping the tech mogul over his support for H-1B visas,&nbsp;Bannon <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3273351\/musk-influence-trump-double-edged-sword-tank-gop-prospects\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">warned<\/a> that he should &ldquo;sit in the back and study&rdquo; or &ldquo;we&rsquo;re going to rip your face off.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong><\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>During his latest interview with the Italian newspaper last week, Bannon suggested that Musk&rsquo;s positions were based on sinister motives.<\/p>\n<p>Musk&rsquo;s &ldquo;sole objective is to become a trillionaire,&rdquo; Bannon said. &ldquo;He will do anything to make sure that any one of his companies is protected or has a better deal or he makes more money. His aggregation of wealth, and then, through wealth, power &mdash; that&rsquo;s what he&rsquo;s focused on.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1871394\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1871394\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Bannon and Musk clash over influence with Trump on immigration<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3142,"featured_media":2389672,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Bannon-musk.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[32192,14161,32102],"class_list":["post-2389671","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-elon-musk","tag-feud","tag-steve-bannon"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Bannon-musk.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2389671","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3142"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2389671"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2389671\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2389675,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2389671\/revisions\/2389675"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2389672"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2389671"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2389671"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2389671"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}