On Monday, the U.S. Secret Service confirmed it was aware of a social media post made by billionaire Elon Musk, where he questioned the lack of assassination attempts on President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Musk, who owns the platform X (formerly Twitter), posted the comment following the arrest of a man suspected of planning to assassinate former President Donald Trump.
In his now-deleted post, Musk wrote: “And no one is even trying to assassinate Biden/Kamala,” followed by an eyebrow-raising emoji. His comment was met with immediate backlash from users, worried that it could incite violence against the current president and vice president. Musk, who has around 200 million followers, faced criticism from both political sides.
While the post was quickly removed, the Secret Service, responsible for the safety of high-ranking officials, took notice. A spokesperson stated, “The Secret Service is aware of the social media post made by Elon Musk,” adding that the agency investigates all threats to those under its protection. They did not comment on whether they had directly contacted Musk.
In response to the controversy, Musk explained that he intended the post as a joke, but acknowledged that humor doesn’t always translate well online. “Turns out that jokes are WAY less funny if people don’t know the context,” he wrote in a follow-up post.
Both President Biden and Vice President Harris condemned political violence and expressed relief that Trump was unharmed. The White House also criticized Musk’s post, calling it “irresponsible” and emphasizing that violence should never be joked about.
This incident highlights the significant impact social media posts from influential figures can have on public safety and discourse.
