ELON Musk has wielded a chainsaw on stage during a conservative conference in Washington.
The Tesla chief executive, who has become Donald Trump's most influential adviser, appeared at the conference outside Washington on Thursday, as he spoke about gutting the American Federal Reserve and accused Democrats of "treason".
Musk also spoke about his plans to cut government spending and downsize the federal workforce with the administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
The controversial entrepreneur was announced earlier in the day as a speaker at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), drawing huge cheers from activists.
Before his appearance, he met with Argentina’s president Javier Milei, who has been praised by Musk and popularised the power tool while campaigning in 2023 when proposing slashing public spending.
wearing sunglasses inside and following an event where he at times had a hard time speaking coherently, Elon Musk walks off the CPAC stage waving around a chain saw. this is the guy currently running our government. Congrats, America! pic.twitter.com/IwUZ8sZItS
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 20, 2025
After Musk appeared onstage, he said Milei had a gift for him. The president walked onstage with a red chainsaw – engraved with Milei’s slogan “Viva la libertad, carajo,” Spanish for “Long live liberty, damn it” – and passed it to Musk.
“This is the chainsaw for bureaucracy,” he said.
Musk criticised the previous Biden administration for its immigration policies, specifically naming an app that was used by nearly one million people to be allowed into the US on two-year permits with eligibility to work.
He accused former president Joe Biden and Democrats of doing that as an “investment” to get more support in swing states.
“A lot of people don’t quite appreciate that this was an actual real scam at scale to tilt the scales of democracy in America,” Musk said before a TV host asked him, “Treason?”
Musk responded: “Treason.”
When asked if Musk would consider auditing the Federal Reserve, Musk responded: “Yeah, sure, while we’re at it.”
“Waste is pretty much everywhere,” he said.
The billionaire joked that El Salvador’s president Nayib Bukele has told him he is worried about his security and was open to ideas on how to improve his safety measures.
“President Bukele from El Salvador, who managed to put in prison like a hundred thousand murderous thugs, and he called me. ‘I am worried about your security’,” he said the Central American leader told him.
“I’m like, dude, you are worried about my security?”
Following Musk, former Trump chief strategist Steve Bannon, appeared on stage for a speech in which he appears to perform a Nazi salute in front of the cheering audience.
Now steve Banon has done a nazi salute at cpac… pic.twitter.com/va6OglXU7o
— Byron (@TherealkingBigB) February 21, 2025
He did the gesture after he urged the CPAC audience in National Harbor, Maryland to “fight, fight, fight.”
After it drew applause, Bannon made a quick nod and responded: “Amen.”
Bannon called for a third term for Trump, and said leaders like him come along twice in history “How did I draw the card to follow Elon Musk?” he asked about a man he has frequently criticised as insufficiently loyal to Trump.
“C’mon, man! You bring out the world’s wealthiest guy, Superman. I’m supposed to follow it? I’m just a crazy Irishman!”
