Chinese Netizens Back Elon Musk in Feud With Trump

Elon Musk’s bold move to launch his political party has sparked an unexpected wave of enthusiasm far beyond America’s borders. On Chinese social media platforms, millions of people are following the unfolding drama between the world’s richest man and United States President Donald Trump with fascination and delight.

Musk announced over the weekend that he was creating the “America Party,” following through on a promise he made to counter Trump’s proposed “One Big Beautiful Bill,” a massive spending plan that the Congressional Budget Office estimates will add $2.4 trillion to the U.S. national debt in the next ten years.

While American politics has long been a source of commentary in China, it is unusual for government censors to allow so much discussion of foreign political infighting to remain online. Yet, posts about Musk’s new party and his rift with Trump have been left largely untouched, racking up more than 68 million views under the hashtag “#Musk wants to establish the American Party” on Weibo, China’s equivalent of X.

Many Chinese internet users see Musk as a daring icon of innovation who is unafraid to challenge powerful figures. Comments ranged from amused admiration to tongue-in-cheek support. One user quipped, “Comrade Musk! If the Americans want to leave you without a country, then just become a citizen of our great China.” Another praised Musk’s independence, writing, “He is not loyal to anyone, only to his own beliefs about the progress of human civilization.”

Some posts turned to humor, suggesting that SpaceX should set up a political party branch on Mars if things on Earth grew too complicated. Others compared the feud to the end of China’s Han dynasty, when rival factions vied for control, an era famously captured in the classic novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

Still, amid the excitement, a few voices offered a dose of realism, noting that America’s two-party system is notoriously hard for outsiders to break. “Fun fact: There are hundreds of big and small political parties in the U.S., so one more ‘America Party’ from Musk wouldn’t make a difference,” one user commented on Bilibili, China’s popular video-sharing site.

For now, Chinese netizens seem happy to watch from afar as Musk challenges the American political establishment, cheering him on as an unlikely protagonist in a very public showdown.