On Tuesday, on X (formerly Twitter) a somewhat surprising label became a trend: #ElonMuskIsATraitor.
The first few thousand comments with the hashtag were from users evidently outraged at Musk, who as revealed by his own biographer, had not given the green light for Starlink satellites to cover the Crimea area so that the Ukrainian army could carry out an attack with six small submarines against the Russian naval fleet, which was based in Sevastopol.
As explained by his biographer, Walter Isaacson, Musk's satellite company played a pivotal role in directing Ukranian submarines in one of their counteroffensive operations. However, there was a problem: Ukrainian authorities did not know that coverage within a 100 km (62 miles) radius of Starlink satellites on the Crimean Peninsula were no longer working.
When Musk was contacted to reactivate the satellites in the area. But the tycoon refused, according to the biographer, which generated great controversy. According to an opinion article for The Washington Post, Isaacson stated that Musk had avoided the Ukranian attacks by disabling the satellites, except the situation did not occur in that order.
"To clarify on the Starlink issue: the Ukrainians THOUGHT coverage was enabled all the way to Crimea, but it was not. They asked Musk to enable it for their drone sub attack on the Russian fleet. Musk did not enable it, because he thought, probably correctly, that would cause a major war," Isaacson wrote.
To clarify on the Starlink issue: the Ukrainians THOUGHT coverage was enabled all the way to Crimea, but it was not. They asked Musk to enable it for their drone sub attack on the Russian fleet. Musk did not enable it, because he thought, probably correctly, that would cause a…
— Walter Isaacson (@WalterIsaacson) September 9, 2023
Neoconservatives and progressives against Musk
This situation provoked harsh criticism against Musk, with many users on the internet calling him a traitor and even some politicians requesting an investigation against him for not helping the Ukrainian army.
"Congress needs to investigate what’s happened here, and whether we have adequate tools to make sure foreign policy is conducted by the government and not by one billionaire," said Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass).
But just as he received attacks and questions, Musk also received a lot of support, including in the #ElonMuskIsATraitor label itself, where in the last few hours you can see various publications supporting him.
If you are posting the #ElonMuskIsATraitor hash tag, because of the Starlink / Ukraine news, I'm sorry, but you are likely ignorant to these facts:.
- Musk has created over 130,000 jobs in the US.
- Musk has single-handedly made the US the leader in EV technology while pushing… pic.twitter.com/ZbaSRNuDHa
— Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) September 12, 2023
But the most notable support Musk received so far came from American journalist and author Glenn Greenwald, who accused the mainstream media of wanting to sink the reputation of the Tesla owner to silence him because he poses a threat to their interests.
"Elon Musk is under fire, again, this time from neocons and corporate journalists insisting that his refusal to turn on Starlink satellites to enable an escalation of Ukraine's military actions amounts to a form of treason," Greenwald said on his show System Update.
He added: "The reason why Elon Musk is being targeted by the ADL as an anti-Semite and now being depicted as a traitor to his country, the United States… is not because necessarily they're angry about what he did in Ukraine, although they are, but more so because it's punishment for his refusal to censor on demand. The media continues its relentless attacks on Elon Musk because he poses an existential threat to what they hold most dear –– their ability to silence any opposition."
Elon Musk is under fire, again, this time from neocons and corporate journalists insisting that his refusal to turn on Starlink satellites to enable an escalation of Ukraine's military actions amounts to a form of treason.
From where does this obligation come? Do we care that… pic.twitter.com/9FfE5azRdw
— System Update (@SystemUpdate_) September 10, 2023
Finally, after opinions for and against, Musk responded to the questions and set a clear stance on those who branded him a traitor on his own social media platform.
"I am a citizen of the United States and have only that passport. No matter what happens, I will fight for and die in America. The United States Congress has not declared war on Russia. If anyone is treasonous, it is those who call me such. Please tell them that very clearly," Musk wrote, in a tweet posted in Greenwald's show responses.
I am a citizen of the United States and have only that passport. No matter what happens, I will fight for and die in America.
The United States Congress has not declared war on Russia. If anyone is treasonous, it is those who call me such.
Please tell them that very clearly.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 11, 2023
