Vivek Ramaswamy once compared Elon Musk to a “circus monkey” eager to do China’s bidding before President-elect Trump tapped the two men to co-lead his proposed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
“I think Tesla is increasingly beholden to China,” Ramaswamy said in a 2023 podcast interview. “I have no reason to think Elon won’t jump like a circus monkey when [Chinese president] Xi Jinping calls in the hour of need.”
Tesla — Musk’s electric car company — depends heavily on its Shanghai battery factory for global auto production.
Ramaswamy also reportedly accused Musk of a “willingness to change his political tunes” to pacify Chinese officials in a 2022 podcast.
Though Musk calls himself a champion for free speech on social media, Ramaswamy pointed out the irony of his relationship with Chinese officials, who don’t share those values.
CNN unearthed numerous unflattering comments Ramaswamy made about his new partner in the past couple years and they weren’t all in regards to China.
In a 2022 Fox News podcast, he suggested Musk’s companies, Tesla and SpaceX, had public funding and government contracts to thank for making Musk the world’s richest man. That comment in particular could be used by critics to question Musk’s goal to cut $2 trillion in government spending under the Trump administration.
Ramaswamy told CNN he made his derogatory comments about Musk before the pair met and now feels differently.
“I love him and respect the hell out of him, and I’m proud to call him a friend,” Ramaswamy told the outlet. “The only country he puts first is the same one I do: the United States of America.”