Besides playing with rockets, Elon Musk is stirring up some trouble again.
He recently announced that from October 20th until the U.S. presidential election on November 5th, his newly founded “America PAC” (Political Action Committee) will be randomly giving away $1 million every day to one lucky swing-state voter who signs his petition.
The first winner has already been selected, and they just so happened to be at the event in person, so Musk handed them a $1 million check on the spot.
Now, the million-dollar prize is for the daily lottery, but all registered Pennsylvania voters who sign the petition will still get $100, while voters from other states get $47 just for signing.
And there’s more! If you refer a friend to sign, you’ll snag an extra $47 as a little recruitment bonus.
The petition Musk is pushing aims to get one million swing-state voters to support the U.S. Constitution, “especially” the First and Second Amendments, which protect FREE SPEECH and GUN RIGHTS.
Of course, that’s the official reason, but the real deal? He’s just trying to score votes for Trump, aiming to win over a few swing states.
Musk knows how to grab attention, and sure enough, this stunt shot him straight to the top of global trending topics.
Some folks say this is just democracy in action, while others argue it undermines the principles of fair competition. After all, it’s flaunting the power of money rather than focusing on candidates’ policies or ideas to gain support.
But here’s the thing—political campaigns are always a multi-faceted competition. I mean, Harris has mega-star Taylor Swift on her side. How’s that any different? (By the way, I’m a die-hard Musk fan and a loyal Swiftie! Just because I’m not into the white left stuff doesn’t mean I can’t love Taylor Swift’s music—hhhhhh!)
So, is what Musk’s doing “bribery”? Well, from a motivational standpoint, yes. He’s made it pretty clear that he’s Team Trump, and his intentions are as plain as day.
But, in his official call to action, he’s being careful with his words. He’s simply offering money for signing a petition supporting the Constitution, without demanding any commitment to vote for Trump. Still, if you pocket the $1 million, who are you likely to vote for? Let’s be real here—take the money, do the favor. It makes sense.
Trump and Musk’s opponents will undoubtedly try to spin this into a legal issue. The governor of Pennsylvania, a Democrat, has already hinted that law enforcement should look into it.
But honestly, that’s not necessary—this governor lacks a bit of wisdom.
Think about it: $1 million isn’t exactly easy for an average American family to come by. There are roughly 8.89 million registered voters in Pennsylvania. With 15 days of lottery and one winner per day, the odds of winning are about 
. That’s way better than the chances of hitting the $5 million lottery jackpot! Everyone knows about this juicy opportunity by now.
Now, if you, as a Democratic governor, use your power to investigate or even declare this illegal, what happens next?
Let’s say you shut it down. Do you think voters will be thrilled with that decision? I mean, I might’ve been that 1-in-600,000 winner, and now you’ve crushed my dream. Who else should I blame but you?
So, whether the Democrats act or don’t act, they’re stuck in a tough spot. If they leave it alone, Musk will continue to rally support. If they intervene, they risk pushing swing voters to his side.
In short, Musk is playing the game well.
A screenshot from https://petition.theamericapac.org
But let’s be honest, this vote-buying thing isn’t exactly new. It’s just like those reality show voting campaigns or when people on WeChat ask you to vote for them. Very common stuff in China actually.
If you’re familiar with rural elections in China, you’d know that Musk’s strategy? We’ve been doing it for ages. Some folks, like Musk, hand out straight cash. Others give out bags of rice, flour, and cooking oil(typical Chinese style lol).
The point is, votes have value, and they can be bought and sold. It’s just that polite society pretends not to notice. You can’t lay it all out on the table, and you definitely can’t write it into the law.
Humans are social creatures, and we’re naturally drawn to power. Those who can afford to spend big on votes are usually the powerful ones.
The only difference between Musk and local village power players in China is that Musk is a world-renowned figure, while the others are local big shots. No real distinction there.
Throwing money around isn’t a problem, as long as people benefit from it. The real question is: Where’s the money coming from? Is it from voluntary market transactions, or is it from forced taxation?
That’s the key difference. If it’s from market profits, where consumers willingly paid, and Musk willingly gives it away, then there’s NO victim here. But if the money comes from taxes or a local bully who’s seized community resources, then clearly there are victims.
So, Musk can do what he’s doing, but the U.S. government can’t.
If someone rises to power using market-earned money, they’re likely to maintain a market-driven agenda, which works in their favor. But if someone gets there through pillaging, they’re going to keep squeezing resources to recover their costs, which means more pain for everyone.
Musk’s a businessman. He knows that a freer market and lower taxes benefit entrepreneurs. If he succeeds, it’ll be a win for business, and the cycle will keep getting better.
So, if you had the chance to vote(just imagine hhhhh, I wish I could as a Chinese), and both candidates are offering you rice, flour, and oil(just a Chinese joke lol~), who would you choose? The one with the skills and willingness to help your village thrive, or the one who’s just out to take your money?
Works Cited
Betts, Anna. “Pennsylvania Governor Slams Elon Musk’s $1m Election Giveaway as ‘Outrageous’.” The Guardian, 21 Oct. 2024, https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/oct/21/election-shapiro-musk-1-million-giveaway.
Theodore Schleifer, Maggie Haberman, Ryan Mac, Jonathan Swan. “Elon Musk Is Going All In to Elect Donald Trump” The New York Times, 11 Oct. 2024, https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/11/us/politics/elon-musk-donald-trump-pennsylvania.html.
“The America PAC Petition.” America PAC, https://petition.theamericapac.org.