The tech billionaire engaged in a Twitter exchange with the U.S. senator, who took issue with the country’s wealth disparity.
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March
22, 2021
4 min read
Elon Musk has made it very clear that his business vision goes beyond planet Earth: He wants to colonize Mars and “make life multiplanetary.”
This time, he defended his fortune in the face of criticism from US Senator Bernie Sanders, saying that his resources will be “to extend the light of consciousness to the stars.”
A few days ago, the Democratic lawmaker criticized the fortune of the CEO of Tesla , as well as that of Jeff Bezos. He linked the two richest men in the world to the problems of hunger and inequality in the United States.
“Bezos and Musk now own more wealth than the bottom 40%,” the politician told the Senate Budget Committee. “Meanwhile, we are seeing more hunger in America than at any time in decades.”
Sanders also expressed his annoyance on Twitter. “We are at a time in American history where two guys, Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, own more wealth than the bottom 40% of the population of this country. That level of greed and inequality is not only immoral. It is unsustainable,” he wrote.
We are in a moment in American history where two guys – Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos – own more wealth than the bottom 40% of people in this country. That level of greed and inequality is not only immoral. It is unsustainable.
– Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) March 18, 2021
Elon Musk was not silent
The founder of SpaceX responded to Bernie Sanders that he would use his enormous wealth to get humanity into space.
“I am accumulating resources to help make life multiplanetary and extend the light of consciousness to the stars,” declared the mogul on Twitter.
I am accumulating resources to help make life multiplanetary & extend the light of consciousness to the stars
– Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 21, 2021
Bernie Sander also responded to Musk
After the tycoon defended his dream of conquering space, the politician thought that the best thing would be to put his feet on Earth.
“Space travel is an exciting idea, but right now we must focus on Earth and create a progressive tax system so that children are not hungry, people are not homeless, and all Americans have health care. The level of inequality in America is obscene and a threat to our democracy,” Sanders wrote on Sunday.
Space travel is an exciting idea, but right now we need to focus on Earth and create a progressive tax system so that children don’t go hungry, people are not homeless and all Americans have healthcare. The level of inequality in America is obscene and a threat to our democracy. https://t.co/CbMWYnPFUx
– Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) March 21, 2021
During 2020, the pandemic left a trail of bankrupt businesses and millions of people out of work. Meanwhile, Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk broke wealth-building records. Notably, the Tesla CEO holds the record for the fastest time span of wealth creation in history. He became the richest person in the world in January of this year.
Fluctuations in the market did not let Musk hold the top spot for long, ceding the spot to Bezos. He now ranks second on the Forbes billionaire rankings, with an estimated net worth of $165 billion. For his part, the CEO of Amazon is at the top with a fortune of $182 billion.