Elon Musk's polarizing ascent in the MAGA movement

This is Alex Heath, deputy editor of The Verge. I’m guest hosting today’s episode while Nilay is still away for a much-needed vacation. He’ll be back next week. But today, we’re diving into the bromance between Elon Musk and Donald Trump, and more specifically, how it’s impacting the changing right-wing political movement here in the United States.

There’s no better place to get that temperature check than CPAC. Musk showed up there this year for a wild interview — you may have seen clips of him waving around a literal chainsaw. Thankfully, Verge policy Gaby del Valle was on the ground this year, and as you’ll hear her say, she barely slept. But she got a front-row look at how the world of MAGA really feels about Elon, DOGE, and regulating Big Tech.

Links:

I cannot describe how strange Elon Musk’s CPAC appearance was | Verge

At CPAC, the world’s populists parrot the leader who inspired them | Politico

Government still threatening to ‘semi-fire’ workers who don’t answer Musk email | Verge

Saying ‘no’ to Musk | NYT

What that chainsaw was really about | NYT

Sequins, merch, chainsaws: Trump’s return to CPAC | NYT

Bannon calls Musk a ‘parasitic illegal immigrant’ | NYT

New York got $80 Million for migrants. The White House took it back | NYT

Federal technology staffers resign rather than help Musk and DOGE | AP

National Park Service layoffs, hiring delays impact visitors | NPR

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