At the 2024 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took the stage in a moment that symbolized his evolving political stance. Musk, who has been increasingly vocal about his disillusionment with left-leaning policies, waved a chainsaw handed to him by Argentina’s President Javier Milei. The gift was more than a mere prop—it represented Milei’s aggressive austerity measures, which have led Argentina to its first budget surplus in over a decade.
Milei, known for his no-nonsense approach to government spending, has slashed Argentina’s budget and reversed years of economic mismanagement. In 2024, the country recorded a 1.76 trillion-peso budget surplus, with its primary fiscal balance climbing to 10.41 trillion pesos. His administration’s cuts have been drastic but effective, and his efforts to eliminate wasteful spending have garnered admiration from conservatives worldwide, including Musk.
Taking the stage with the chainsaw, Musk read the engraved words, “Viva la libertad, carajo,” which translates to “Long live liberty, damn it.” He used the moment to emphasize his stance against excessive government intervention and praised Milei for his fiscal discipline. Musk, who had previously maintained a more centrist political stance, explained why he now supports the Republican Party. “I thought we were sort of heading to a point of no return, really,” Musk said. “And so that’s why it was so essential that President Trump won the election and that there be a Republican majority in the House and Senate, which, thanks to you, has been accomplished.”
Elon Musk, the billionaire tasked with slashing US federal government spending, took to the stage at a conservative conference outside Washington with a gift from Argentina's libertarian President Javier Milei: a chainsaw https://t.co/FaLbmPS4yG pic.twitter.com/2x0rjGq2Sj
— Reuters (@Reuters) February 21, 2025
Throughout his speech, Musk repeatedly stressed the importance of returning to the values that made America great—namely, freedom and opportunity. He expressed concerns that the country’s trajectory under the Biden administration was unsustainable, particularly in the areas of economic policy and federal spending. “A country is no different from a person,” Musk explained. “Country overspends, a country goes bankrupt in the same way as a person who overspends usually goes bankrupt. So, it’s not like optional to solve these things, it’s essential.”
This is so epic. The president of Argentina @JMilei presents Elon Musk @elonmusk with a golden chainsaw.
A chainsaw to CUT bureaucracy. ???????????????????????????????????????????????? pic.twitter.com/wJCIJfhMjJ
— Patriot Lady (@angelwoman501) February 21, 2025
Musk also took direct aim at the Biden administration’s approach to immigration, calling it a calculated strategy to increase the number of future Democratic voters. “You don’t actually have to assume some grand conspiracy, you just need to look at basic incentives,” he argued. “If the probability [is] that an illegal is going to vote Democrat at some point … then the incentive is to maximize the number of illegals in the country.” He claimed the administration was funneling taxpayer money into efforts to bring in as many illegal immigrants as possible, describing each new arrival as a “customer” for the Democratic Party.
