Elon Musk Takes Place of One Important Person in Trump Family Photo

On Wednesday afternoon, Donald Trump’s granddaughter Kai Trump posted a photo of the entire family clan at their estate in Mar-a-Lago, including all of the president-elect’s children, their spouses, and several grandchildren. But the photo was missing his wife, Melania, and, for some reason, included billionaire Elon Musk.

The photo was clearly meant to be celebratory, coming after Trump’s election win was confirmed, so it’s conspicuous that the former and future first lady was absent. It’s telling that Musk, who juiced the Trump campaign with millions of dollars in the past few months, is, quite literally, in the picture.

The billionaire tech CEO spent election night with Trump, showing that he is now a part of the president-elect’s inner circle. He’s already been promised a major role in the Trump administration to improve government efficiency, claiming that he can cut $2 trillion from the federal budget. Such cuts would almost certainly have negative consequences in the lives of many Americans, especially since Social Security would likely be targeted.

Musk, the world’s richest man, stands to be even richer during Trump’s presidency, with less scrutiny from government regulators and favorable treatment from his new best friend. The stock in his electric car company, Tesla, has skyrocketed in the past day. The billionaire has promised to continue his political efforts through his America PAC, meaning that Trump and his MAGA friends will have Musk’s dollars at their disposal for some time to come.

The photo perhaps is a look at who will be the public faces of the next first family. Trump’s wife, while not invisible during his first term, spent a lot of time in Trump Tower in New York and wasn’t very active during his 2024 campaign. Maybe Musk is now an honorary part of the Trump family thanks to his money and support, and maybe Melania Trump is going to focus on herself this time around. She already published a new book in the past year and disclosed a hidden support for abortion rights. Perhaps she doesn’t want the same kind of attention that she got in Trump’s first term.