Let’s face it: some kids are simply incorrigible.

And as we lace up the gloves for round . . . oh, hell, I’ve lost count of how many rounds they’ve already gone. It probably doesn’t matter, really, as it seems there will be no clear winner in this fight. Because Donald Trump — ostensibly the world’s most powerful man — and Elon Musk — literally the world’s richest man — are proving themselves, in terms of character at least, to be a couple of big-time losers.

Donald Trump started this round with his ”One Big Beautiful Bill” — in reality, a nightmare for the future of the U.S. economy and the welfare of its people. As it proceeded through the late-night intrigues being played out in the U.S. Senate (during which about $1 trillion was somehow added to the bottom line of the national deficit), it became more apparent to Elon Musk that some of the provisions of that bill were going to have a hugely adverse effect on his business interests. And so he voiced his criticisms, enlarging upon those of the Democratic members of Congress, and even going so far as to contemplate the formation of a third major political party.

Yesterday, Musk promised that lawmakers who vote for the bill “will lose their primary next year if it is the last thing I do on this Earth.” [Ben Werschkul, Finance.yahoo.com, July 1, 2025.]

And as the guy who spent at least $288 million on campaign donations during the 2024 campaign, and can afford to up the ante as far as necessary, he may well be in a position to deliver on that promise . . . presumably before he leaves Earth to take up residence on Mars.

Of course, in Trump world, no challenge ever goes unanswered. Responding to Musk’s objection to the bill’s proposed elimination of EV subsidies — which would have a devastating impact on his Tesla business — Trump said:

“Elon can lose a lot of more than that,” and called DOGE — the Department of Government Efficiency that Trump himself had created — “a monster that might have to go back and eat Elon.” [Id.]

Finally, when a reporter asked Trump whether he would consider deporting Musk — a native of South Africa — he said simply, “We’ll have to take a look.” [Id.]

*. *. *

Yes, boys will be boys. But this is not a schoolyard argument over a game of kickball. These are serious issues, being bandied about by two individuals in positions of nearly unlimited power, whose actions can potentially have an effect on millions of lives.

In bringing Elon Musk to Washington and placing him in the position of DOGE’s chief executioner, Donald Trump, like Frankenstein, created a monster. The question now is whether — like Mary Shelley’s fictional character — that monster, in its inability to fit into its intended role, will turn on its creator.

The mythical Greek Titan called Prometheus . . . Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein . . . today’s Donald Trump . . . each the victim of his own folly.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
7/2/25