Bill Gates Slams Elon Musk: Reduced Aid Budget Causes Millions of Child Deaths
Children's lives endangered due to Musk's budget revisions, as per Gates' assertions - Children's mortality accelerated due to Musk's fiscal adjustments, as per Gates' assertion.
Legendary tech mogul, Bill Gates, has taken aim at fellow billionaire, Elon Musk, accusing the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX of playing a significant role in the deaths of millions of children due to drastic cuts to the U.S. aid organization USAID's budget. Gates believes that these reductions, which have escalated the annual number of children dying in impoverished regions from five to six million, are largely due to Musk's influence during Trump's presidency.
Originally, Gates said, the number should have decreased to four million deaths in the coming years. "Due to these cuts, millions more children will die," Gates asserted. In an interview with the "New York Times", Gates placed the blame squarely on Musk's shoulders: "He's the one who cut the budget of USAID."
Musk had responded to Gates' accusations on his online platform, X, with a simple "Gates is a huge liar."
USAID in the Crosshairs
In 2016, Musk backed Donald Trump's presidential campaign with over 250 million dollars and transitioned into a trusted advisor for the newly elected president. Trump tasked Musk with minimizing government spending, a mandate Musk fulfilled by taking aim at USAID, which he criticized as inefficient and wasteful. Musk publicly referred to USAID as a "criminal organization," citing unfounded evidence and conspiracy theories to support his claims.
Despite his wealth, estimated at over 300 billion dollars, Musk has been reluctant to contribute signficant resources towards charitable causes. Gates, however, remains committed to his foundation, which focuses on improving child and maternal health, fighting infectious diseases, and addressing pressing global development issues.
Gates himself has pledged the majority of his wealth, over 200 billion dollars, to charitable causes through his foundation over the next two decades. By contrast, Musk, who joined "The Giving Pledge" initiatives founded by Gates and Warren Buffett, has yet to demonstrate significant philanthropic impact.
- Bill Gates
- Elon Musk
- Children
- CEO
- USAID
- Conspiracy Theory
- Political Influence
- Death toll
- Philanthropy
- As a response to Bill Gates' accusations to Elon Musk about children's death due to USAID budget cuts, Musk labeled Gates as a "huge liar" on his online platform.
- Trump, during his presidency, tasked Elon Musk, a trusted advisor, with minimizing government spending, leading to USAID being targeted as inefficient and wasteful.
- While Elon Musk, notable for his wealth and influencing Trump, has been hesitant to contribute significantly to charitable causes, Bill Gates remains dedicated to his foundation's work in improving child and maternal health, among other global issues.
- The drastic cuts to USAID's budget, spearheaded by Elon Musk's political influence, are believed by Bill Gates to be responsible for the annual deaths of five to six million children in poverty-stricken regions.
- Bill Gates, with his pledge to donate over 200 billion dollars to charitable causes, has starkly contrasted Musk's lack of significant philanthropic impact, even though both are members of "The Giving Pledge" initiatives.
