It may seem that Sen. John Fetterman (D-Penn.) and Elon Musk may not have a lot in common — and they don’t.
Musk is a billionaire and Republican; Fetterman is a Democrat who has been a champion for the underdog.
But that didn’t stop the Pennsylvania lawmaker from expressing his admiration for the staunch supporter of President-elect Donald Trump Thursday.
“I admire Mr. Musk. He’s been involved in very important parts of American society: AI, SpaceX and other kinds of things,” Fetterman said on Capitol Hill, The Hill reported.
“Yes, he is on a different team, but that doesn’t make me an enemy,” Fetterman said. “I don’t … [am not] automatically going to become a critic.”
The Pennsylvania Democrat said he can see and acknowledge what Musk has done even though the two don’t agree politically.
“It’s like, ‘Hey, he has made our economy and our nation better.’ And our politics are different, and I don’t agree with some of the things that he might say, but that doesn’t make him, like I said, an enemy,” Fetterman said.
Musk responded with a post on X, formerly Twitter.
“Hard not to like @SenFettermanPA. He puts country over party,” Musk wrote.
Trump recently named Musk, along with entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, to head the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
Fetterman said earlier this year that Musk’s endorsement of Trump meant something.
“Most endorsements don’t count for much in this business, but Musk is … incredibly popular, and he has an appeal to a demographic that Democrats have struggled with,” Fetterman said on NewsNation.
“To some people that they see him as, that’s Tony Stark,” he said. “He’s the world’s richest man, and he’s undeniably a brilliant guy.”
