Elon Musk hits back at Senator over Russian-Ukraine war
Tesla Inc. TSLA Elon Musk received a lot of criticism for proposing a peace plan for Russia and Ukraine earlier this week.
What Happened: On Wednesday, Sen. Lindsey Graham R-S. C. took to Twitter to give a historical perspective on the Russian-Ukraine war, in order to help Musk understand the facts of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Graham argued that it was dumb to suggest that the invasion should conclude by giving up the Russian part of Ukraine after all the suffering. He recalled the 1994 Budapest memorandum in which Ukraine gave up its nuclear weapon arsenal in exchange for assurances of its territorial integrity. He added that the agreement, which was signed by Russia, included protection of Crimea and Donbas as part of Ukraine.
The Senator said that everyone should demand that Russia respects the boundaries they agreed to in 1994 and withdraw its forces for peace in Ukraine.
If Elon Musk and others want the world to continue to be in chaos, then by all means capitulate to Putin and reward his aggression, Graham said.
The Senator attacked Musk by bringing in something that was unrelated to the war in Ukraine. He suggested that Congress should revisit the electric vehicle tax credit boondoggle. The credit is now only benefiting EV manufacturers who have raised prices equal to the tax credit, he said, suggesting that they have snuffed out the benefits that are due to customers.
He went a step ahead and said that this could help save money, which could be used to aid Ukrainians in defending their homeland.
Musk Hits Back: In a response, Musk said that in any conflict region, the will of those living there should be considered. Most Ukrainians want to be part of Ukraine, although some eastern portions of the eastern portions prefer Russia, Musk said.
In 2012, a billionaire shared a map of Ukraine showing the eastern region had elected pro-Russian candidates.
He said that not everyone who voted for the pro-Russian party wanted to join Russia, but it would be inaccurate to say that none did.
Aaron Rupar asked Musk to Google and see what Russia had done to Ukraine since 2012, a reference to Russia's aggression in the region, including the annexation of Crimea in 2014, in an apparent reference to Russia's aggression in the region.
David Sacks, venture capitalist and entrepreneur, said the Senator doesn't like talking back to and threatened with the withdrawal of the EV tax credit after the exchanges between Graham and Musk. He said since Tesla doesn't benefit from tax credits, the threat wouldn't work.
When a user asked Musk if he had ever talked to Vladimir Putin in person, the Tesla CEO said they both talked via videoconference the previous year.
Musk said that war was the ultimate Supreme Court decision.
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