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Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., was optimistic on Friday that former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) leader Elon Musk would be targeting Republicans instead of Democrats in the 2026 midterm elections after his feud with President Donald Trump.
In an interview with Semafor, Khanna said that he spoke to some of the Tesla CEO’s “senior confidants” about whether Musk would be interested in supporting Democratic candidates in 2026. Based on Musk’s recent attacks against the Trump administration and his history of supporting Democrats, Khanna believed a change could be possible.
“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 said. “I look forward to Elon turning his fire against MAGA Republicans instead of Democrats in 2026.”
BOOKER WON’T ACCEPT MONEY FROM ELON MUSK FOR CAMPAIGN, BUT URGES HIM TO ‘SOUND THE ALARM’ ON TRUMP-BACKED BILL
Elon Musk and President Donald Trump had a public falling out online over Trump’s spending bill last week. (Getty Images)
Khanna made similar comments to Politico on Wednesday where he implored the party to start trying to embrace Musk after he broke ranks with Trump.
“We should ultimately be trying to convince him that the Democratic Party has more of the values that he agrees with,” Khanna said. “A commitment to science funding, a commitment to clean technology, a commitment to seeing international students like him.”
Fox News Digital reached out to a Musk spokesperson for a comment.
While Democrats have largely framed Musk as a political enemy because of his support for Trump, Khanna has been a notable exception, calling for “bipartisan cooperation” with DOGE’s efforts to cut federal spending prior to Trump taking office for the second time..
Not every progressive has encouraged reaching out to Musk ahead of the midterms. On CNN Sunday, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., told “State of the Union” host Dana Bash that he didn’t believe Democrats should work with the “right-wing extremist.”
ELON MUSK BIOGRAPHER BELIEVES BILLIONAIRE IS ‘FRUSTRATED’ AS HE EXITS DOGE
Rep. Ro Khanna has supported Elon Musk’s efforts to cut federal spending in the past. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
“Musk has evolved over the years. My understanding is he actually voted for Obama in 2008. But over the years, he has developed into a right-wing extremist,” Sanders said.
While Musk and Trump traded harsh barbs last week over Trump’s massive tax and spending package, Musk has since shown signs of reconciling with the Trump administration on social media.
On Sunday, Musk shared a Truth Social post from Trump regarding the Los Angeles riots that broke out on Friday. He also re-posted one of Vice President JD Vance’s posts on X about the riots, signaling approval of the administration’s handling of the situation.
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