X, Tesla, and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk heightened his feud with California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) after being needled by Newsom on X over Musk’s estrangement from his own trans daughter. After Newsom’s social media team said, “We’re sorry your daughter hates you, Elon,” the CEO posted his own rant against trans people.

“I assume you’re referring to my son, [deadname], who has a tragic mental illness caused by the evil woke mind virus you push on vulnerable children,” Musk said. “I love [deadname] very much and hope he recovers.”

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This week, a clip of Newsom talking went viral for his support of trans rights, a position that has angered many right-wing figures. Newsom points out in the New York Times video that as governor of California, he has enacted more pro-trans legislation than in any other state. However, he still defends his stance against trans inclusion in sports as an issue of fairness, noting that “80% of people listening disagree with my position on this.”

“I want to see trans kids, I have a trans godson, there is no governor who has signed more pro-trans legislation than I have and no one has been a stronger advocate for the LGBT community,” he told the Times‘ Ezra Klein.

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That video was retweeted by America PAC, a political action committee Musk founded in 2024 when he endorsed the current president. In an attempt to criticize Newsom, the retweet simply quoted him, saying, “California Governor Gavin Newsom: ‘I want to see trans kids… There’s no governor that’s done more pro trans legislation than I have.’”

Newsom’s Press Office account responded simply saying, “Correct. We’re sorry your daughter hates you, Elon.”

One of Elon Musk’s daughters, Vivian Jenna Wilson, is trans and has distanced herself from her father, taking her mother’s last name instead and speaking out against Musk.

Musk’s response not only deadnames and misgenders his daughter, but also repeats his past claims that her transgender identity is caused by the “woke mind virus.” In a 2024 interview, he claimed he had “lost his son” and brought up the idea of the woke mind virus, claiming they call it deadnaming because “your son is dead.”

Musk’s “woke mind virus” claim is itself just a spin-off of other dismissed attacks on trans identities as being genuine, such as “social contagion” theories, or claims of “rapid onset gender dysphoria.”

Wilson seemingly made a dig at Musk herself, posting on Threads after America PAC’s tweet but before Newsom’s press office responded, saying, “If you’re going to talk sh*t about me, then do it directly,” and appearing to refer to her father under the blanket of “cowardly men.”

View on Threads

In his tweet, Musk also attempted to defend his standing as a father by naming three of his daughters and claiming that they “love me very much.”

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