President-elect Donald Trump struck back at media reports suggesting adviser Elon Musk is serving as a shadow president.
"No, he's not taking the presidency," Trump told Turning Point Action's America Fest speech in Phoenix, Arizona, on Sunday in a speech that aired on Newsmax and the free Newsmax2 streaming platform. "I like having smart people."
Trump equated the media's suggestion Musk is serving as a de facto president to sharing their latest "hoax."
"You know, they're on a new kick," Trump said. "Russia, Russia, Russia, Ukraine, Ukraine, Ukraine, all the different hoaxes — and the new one is President Trump has ceded the presidency to Elon Musk.
"No, no, that's not happening."
The latest "hoax" reached a crescendo when liberals were disappointed Musk used his X platform to participate in actual democracy for the people, by outing the liberal giveaways and raises for Congress in the first failed continuing resolution put forth.
"But Elon has done an amazing job," Trump said. "Isn't it nice to have smart people that we can rely on? Don't we want that? He's done a great job."
Trump praised Musk for tireless work campaigning for him in Pennsylvania, helping deliver the election-deciding state on election night.
"He went to Pennsylvania and he stayed up there for a month and helped us to win that state, which we won by a lot," Trump said. "So he was really good. And he supplied Starlink for North Carolina when they had no form of communication."
Starlink for hurricane-ravaged areas of North Carolina "saved a lot of lives," Trump concluded.
"So we want to thank him, but no he's not going to be president that I can tell you," Trump said. "And I'm safe. You know why he can't be? He wasn't born in this country. But the fake news knows that.
"Now, he's a great guy, and we want to have him."
Trump hailed Musk as the co-leader of the Department of Government Efficiency.
"We're going to be draining that swamp at levels never seen before," Trump said.
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