Elon Musk speaks to historian about government subsidies, accuses him of rehashing oil and gas industry 'propaganda'

Famous historian Ruth Ben-Ghiat found herself in the crossfire of billionaire Elon Musk on Saturday when she called him out for his "false selflessness".

What Happened: Following reports that SpaceX wrote to the Pentagon asking them to foot the bill for providing Starlink internet services to Ukraine, Musk returned to clarify that he would continue to fund the Ukrainian government. free.

Commenting on the tweet, Ben-Ghiat said, "False altruism is one of the grossest things about @elonmusk who himself received nearly $5 billion in grants governmental." She also included the link to a 2015 Los Angeles Times article that Tesla, Inc. TSLA, SolarCity and SpaceX received an estimated $4.9 billion in government aid.

Musk fired back with a response, asking the historian why she was "perpetuating the propaganda concocted by the oil and gas industry." The propaganda, according to the billionaire, is to divert attention from the $6 trillion a year in subsidies that oil and gas companies receive.

Tesla's CEO also shared an IMF report on fossil fuel subsidies, which showed that globally, fossil fuel subsidies amounted to 5.9 trillion or 6.8% of GDP in 2020 and will likely increase to 7.4% of GDP in 2025.

Why it matters: Although Musk's companies provide an alternative to non-renewable energy resources, he has said in the past that the world still needs oil and gas.< /p>

"In reality, I think we have to use oil and gas in the short term, because otherwise civilization will collapse," he previously said on the sidelines of a conference on energy in Stavanger, Norway.

Musk believes that it would take several decades for the world to transition to sustainable energy. That said, in the past he has spoken out against subsidies to oil and gas companies.

When speaking at the Wall Street Journal CEO Summit in December 2021, he called for the removal of the Biden administration's infrastructure package, adding that his company of electric vehicles did not need subsidies to stimulate demand. Likewise, no assistance is needed for gas stations or charging networks, he added.

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