JD Vance warned Elon Musk that launching a third party would be a “huge mistake” and urged him instead to stay “loyal” to Donald Trump’s GOP.
Vance’s plea comes after reports that Musk is offering to support his bid to replace Trump in 2028 as candidates try to prepare behind the scenes without angering the president.
Amid talk that Musk is having second thoughts about his planned “America Party,” the vice president used a Fox News interview to deliver a blunt message to the mogul: “My advice to Elon would be to try to fix the Republican Party. Try to push it in your own way.
“Disagree with me all you want, disagree with the president of the United States, but don’t pretend that you can make a big difference with a third party.
“I think Elon would make a much bigger difference if he stayed loyal to President Trump’s Republican Party, and if he had disagreements, express those disagreements from the inside as opposed from the outside.”
Vance’s plea came as The Wall Street Journal reported Musk is quietly putting the brakes on his “America Party,” with allies saying he’s focusing on his companies and may keep his powder dry—perhaps even eyeing Vance in 2028.
Musk publicly swatted away talk that he was “eas[ing] off plans for a new political party,” posting, “Nothing @WSJ says should ever be thought of as true.”
In his interview on The Ingraham Angle—in which host Laura Ingraham described him as a “good friend” of Musk—Vance also shot down the suggestion the world’s richest man might bankroll him for the presidency in 2028, calling the Journal claim “completely fake.”
Vance also suggested Musk’s attempts to set up a new party would be hampered by his past association with the Trump administration.
“My argument to him is whether you like it or not, you are now perceived by the far left as on the side of the American right,” Vance said.
Addressing Musk directly, he went on: “You believe in law and order, you believe in closed borders, you believe in economic growth and prosperity, you believe in making things in the United States of America.”
He added: “The idea that Elon is ever going to go back to being sort of in the middle, where Democrats and Republicans both like him, that’s just not going to happen. He is perceived as being on the American right.”
But behind Vance’s “stay in the tent” argument is the simple truth that the Tesla and SpaceX CEO is the ultimate megadonor, with an estimated fortune north of $400 billion.
Musk has pumped millions into MAGA causes, including a $15 million burst to pro-Trump groups this month, even as he flirted with third-party machinations and despite having posted a bombshell message on his social media platform X claiming that Trump was in the Jeffrey Epstein investigation files.
The MAGA-versus-Musk cold war has rolled on for months, with polls suggesting that Musk’s threatened third party could siphon support from the GOP.
Musk has since swung between Trumpworld friend and foe, even as the administration stripped back his footprint in government.
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House, the Office of the Vice President, and Musk for comment.
