Washington – SABA:
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Sunday urged billionaire Elon Musk to focus on managing his companies and steer clear of politics, following Musk’s announcement of plans to form a new political party in the United States.
In an interview with CNN, Bessent stated:
“The principles of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) had broad bipartisan appeal — not just because of Musk. In fact, his personal popularity has declined according to several polls.”
He continued:
“I believe the boards of his various companies would prefer to see him return to running those businesses — something he excels at more than anything else. It’s likely they’ll encourage him to stay focused on his commercial ventures rather than political ambitions.”
On Saturday, Musk announced his intention to create a new political party after conducting a poll on X (formerly Twitter), where 65.4% of over 1.2 million users voted in favor of forming the party under the banner of “restoring freedom.”
On Sunday, he filed official registration papers with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) for the party, named “Party of America”
The move comes amid Musk’s public opposition to a new federal spending and tax bill backed by the Trump administration. President Trump described the legislation as “big and beautiful,” though it aims to cut spending and reduce the budget deficit and national debt.
However, several economists and lawmakers have warned the bill may backfire and actually widen the deficit.
Trump dismissed Musk’s criticism, sarcastically suggesting the billionaire may end up “back in South Africa” without government funding.
A Harvard CAPS–Harris poll in April showed Musk’s approval rating fell by 5 points to 49% during his leadership of the now-disbanded DOGE initiative. In contrast, 56% of respondents gave a favorable rating to the DOGE administration’s performance overall.
Other polls have shown similar trends, indicating growing skepticism toward Musk’s political involvement.
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