In the eight weeks since Election Day, Elon Musk has effectively been Donald Trump’s shadow. The president-elect met with foreign officials? There was Musk. The Republican dined with prominent business leaders? There was Musk. Incoming administration officials interviewed prospective job applicants? There was Musk. Trump enjoyed a social gathering at his glorified country club? There was Musk.
The more the billionaire megadonor has maintained an omnipresent role at the president-elect’s side, the more some observers have asked an unavoidable question: What did Musk do, move into Mar-a-Lago?
As it turns out, that question appears to have an unexpected answer. The New York Times reported that in the weeks since Trump’s campaign victory, the world’s wealthiest individual has become the Republican’s tenant:
Mr. Musk has been using one of the cottages available for rent on Mr. Trump’s property at Mar-a-Lago, the former Marjorie Merriweather Post home in Florida that Mr. Trump converted into a members-only club and hotel in the 1990s, according to two people with knowledge of the arrangement. The cottage where he has been staying, named Banyan, is several hundred feet away from the main house, according to a person who knows the property. Staying right on the grounds has helped provide Mr. Musk with easy access to Mr. Trump.
The Times’ reporting hasn’t been independently verified by MSNBC or NBC News, and it’s worth noting that when the newspaper sought comment from both men, they declined. That said, it’s been a few days since the article was first published, and neither Trump nor Musk have made any effort to deny the apparent arrangement.
The reporting, if correct, does shed some light on how, exactly, the Republican megadonor has been able to maintain his proximity to the president-elect: Musk, eager to maintain as much influence as possible, appears to have become Trump’s nearby neighbor.
The Times’ report went on to note, “Mr. Musk is unlikely to have such unfettered physical access to Mr. Trump after the president-elect is sworn in on Jan. 20 in Washington. Coming and going in the West Wing is more onerous than at Mr. Trump’s private clubs, as is access to the White House residence.”
Maybe. It’s certainly possible that Musk is taking advantage of the pre-inaugural period, effectively moving into Mar-a-Lago to ensure near-constant access to the president-elect before the second Trump administration begins in earnest.
But would anyone be shocked if Trump also gave Musk an office in the White House complex? The Eisenhower Executive Office Building — a one-minute walk from the West Wing — has quite a bit of space, and it’s easy to imagine the incoming president directing his team to put aside room for the so-called “Department of Government Efficiency,” ensuring that the billionaire would maintain his ability to frequently stop by the Oval Office.
