Roving Periscope: “A billion people back Musk,” China says as it fishes in US troubled waters!
Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: The Chinese are smiling ear-to-ear. “A billion people are backing you,” their social media users boasted, as Beijing was transfixed as US President Donald Trump’s public spat with his one-time ‘inseparable’ backer, Elon Musk, intensified.
Since nothing unofficial can be made public in China, even on social media, this popular enthusiasm for Musk is viewed as discreet backing of Beijing, given the rising tensions on multiple issues between the two largest economies in the world.
The conversation has been allowed to flourish on China’s tightly controlled social media, suggesting that at least some censors are betting that the US political chaos could be no bad thing for China.
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO’s feud with Trump is now dominating Chinese social media, with many praising his ‘tech-driven mindset,’ the media reported on Wednesday.
The ill-fated bromance between the controversial US president and the world’s wealthiest man, which once raised questions about American oligarchy, is now being pored over by social media users in China, many of whom are part of Team Musk.
The latest American drama commenced with Musk pledging to found a new political outfit, The American Party (TAP), if Trump’s sweeping tax and spending bill, “The One Big, Beautiful Bill,” which the Tesla CEO described as “insane,” was passed. On Tuesday, the US Senate did pass it.
What will Musk do now?
He has already vowed to campaign against, fund, and unseat lawmakers who backed the Republican President’s flagship piece of legislation, which, Musk said, could increase US national debt by USD 3.3 trillion, which already swelled to USD 36.2 trillion in May 2025.
On Wednesday, hours after the bill passed the US Senate, the hashtag #MuskWantsToBuildAnAmericaParty went viral on Weibo, a Chinese social media platform similar to Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) receiving more than 37 million views, the media reported.
“If Elon Musk were to found a political party, his tech-driven mindset could inject fresh energy into politics. The potential for change is significant – and worth watching,” wrote one Weibo user.
“When you’ve had enough, there’s no need to keep putting up with it,” wrote another.
One comment summed up the mood on the platform: “Brother Musk, you’ve got over a billion people on our side backing you.”
Musk is widely venerated in China for his business acumen and technological achievements. Tesla’s electric vehicles are the only western brand on Chinese roads that can rival domestic firms, and the company’s biggest factory by volume is in Shanghai. Musk is known to have a close relationship with Chinese Premier Li Qiang, while his mother, Maye Musk, is a social media celebrity in her own right in China.
His popularity in China follows a well-established trend of Chinese audiences enthusiastically embracing US tech innovators. Walter Isaacson’s biography of Steve Jobs was a bestseller in China, as was his biography of Musk.
President Trump is, however, viewed by many as an unpredictable funnyman who has launched the most aggressive trade war on China in recent history, imposing more than 140 percent tariff on certain items.
Some internet users commented that Trump and Musk should grow up. “These two grown men argue nonstop over the smallest things – and the whole world ends up knowing about it,” wrote one user, while another joked: “Every day, Musk is basically live-streaming ‘How Billionaires Argue’”.
