For years Democratic Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have targeted Tesla founder Elon Musk with false accusations about his tax burden. Warren has been particularly vicious in recent months and has repeatedly said Musk pays "no taxes." This is a lie.
SEN. WARREN: "You know how much [Elon Musk] paid in taxes, one of the richest people in the world? Zero! And he's not the only one. Jeff Bezos, another one of the richest people in the world, he pays less in taxes than a public school teacher or a firefighter." pic.twitter.com/8glWry5lWz
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) February 20, 2022
Will visit IRS next time I’m in DC just to say hi, since I paid the most taxes ever in history for an individual last year. Maybe I can have a cookie or something …
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 20, 2022
The Biden administration has repeatedly snubbed Musk's success, touting the electric vehicles produced by unionized companies like GM and Ford.
"You know, Biden held this EV summit, didn't invite Tesla. Invited GM, Ford, Chrysler, and UAW. An EV summit on the White House. Didn't mention Tesla once, and praised GM and Ford for leading the EV revolution. Does this sound maybe a little biased or something? And you know, just, it's not the friendliest administration. Seems to be controlled by unions as far as I can tell," Musk said last year.
But the numbers are in and Musk will pay enough in taxes this year to cover GM's taxpayer funded bailout in 2008.
"Elon Musk’s 2021 taxes were just about enough to pay back GM’s bailout earlier this century. Reuters reported that the US government lost $11.2 billion bailing out GM, more than the $10.3 billion the Treasury Department estimated it made when it sold its remaining GM shares in December. In 2021, Elon Musk paid over $11 billion in taxes due to selling Tesla shares," CleanTechnica reports.
Musk's mother, Maye Musk, is making sure Senators Sanders and Warren know.
You’re welcome @SenSanders @SenWarren https://t.co/7dbcbZVGfs
— Maye Musk (@mayemusk) March 3, 2022