If you believe Trump Derangement Syndrome is a unique, one-off illness, you’re mistaken. The left has someone new to despise: Elon Musk. The brilliant and unusual billionaire some might describe as alien-smart is being mercilessly derided for his role in the Trump administration. Millions appear to be suffering from MDS – Musk Derangement Syndrome – but the strange thing about all this poisonous fury being directed at the president’s right-hand man is that he used to be someone the left admired, confirming once and for all that there is a fine line between love and hate.
Once revered as the nerd they loved, the South African entrepreneur now appears to be someone leftists love to hate. In an article for The Hill, former White House and Pentagon official Douglas MacKinnon tracked Musk’s fall from progressive grace, which occurred when he purchased Twitter. “Almost overnight, Musk became ‘Public Enemy No. 2.’ He will obviously never reach the number one position since the left has carved former President Donald Trump’s name in granite for that title,” MacKinnon astutely observed.
Now that Musk has landed as the point man for the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Musk Derangement Syndrome has reached epidemic proportions. Rich Lowry put his finger on the symptoms of MDS in a piece for the Las Vegas Review-Journal, writing:
“Democrats are braying for Musk to get arrested at rallies in the street. They’re trying to subpoena him. They want to know if his DOGE team is guilty of breaches of national security. They are targeting him with a bill they’ve dubbed, embarrassingly, the Eliminate Looting of Our Nation by Mitigating Unethical State Kleptocracy (ELON MUSK) Act.”
Charges Leveled at Musk
All that’s left is a perp walk and a mug shot, something Democrats not-so-secretly desire but are unable to accomplish in the current political environment. So, precisely what has Mr. Musk done to deserve such excoriation?
Elon Musk is rooting out fraud, waste, and abuse in the federal government. He’s letting sunlight shine on the misuse of billions of dollars. He’s saving the taxpayer from funding a plethora of ridiculous programs – largely unsupported by the average American. These actions and the fact that he has befriended Public Enemy No. 1 led to the rise of MDS among progressives.
It’s easy to identify Musk Derangement Syndrome as an irrational sickness just by evaluating the vitriol:
He’s unelected and, therefore, should wield no power.
He was born in South Africa and thus participated in Apartheid.
He’s wealthy. (This is always a negative for limousine liberals.)
These are baseless charges, of course. Since when do presidential officers and advisors need to be elected? Did everyone who was born in South Africa participate in Apartheid? And demonizing those with money by the likes of Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is rich, to say the least.
This week, Musk’s minions will begin their audit of the IRS. It’s likely to be a startling review, and there will be a surge in reported cases of MDS. However, as the wealthiest man in the world and one of not-insignificant brain power, the odds are that Elon Musk will remain unphased by the criticism because he has a job to do and nothing to prove. These are the types of men and women who march to a different beat and know how to get things done. This type of personal confidence is why Elon Musk scares the hell out of the left.
