Washington DC [US], October 14 (ANI): US Senator Bernie Sanders on Tuesday (local time) slammed the "corrupt campaign finance system" in the US, citing the substantial election spending by billionaire and SpaceX founder Elon Musk and other influential groups ahead of the upcoming US midterm elections, while calling for sweeping campaign finance reform.
In a post on X, Sanders highlighted the money spent by wealthy individuals, cryptocurrency interests and political advocacy groups during the 2024-2026 election cycle on Republicans, arguing that the scale of such expenditure underscored the need to reform the campaign finance system.
"What a corrupt campaign finance system looks like: Between 2024 and 2026, Musk spent over $650 million to buy elections. Crypto spent over $500 million. AIPAC spent $230 million. AI spent over $200 million. Dems must implement REAL campaign finance reform. ONE PERSON, ONE VOTE," Sanders said in the post.
Sanders also took aim at the influence of major technology companies, labelling them "Big Tech Oligarchs" and warning against growing influence in shaping public policy.
In a separate post, Sanders, while backing a proposal by Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed to temporarily halt the development of advanced artificial intelligence models and data centres until policymakers establish new safeguards for the technology, warned against allowing wealthy technology executives to determine the future direction of the technology.
"Thank you Abdul El-Sayed for putting out a bold plan to protect the American people against the very serious dangers posed by advanced AI & superintelligence. I look forward to working with you to pass it. We won’t allow Big Tech Oligarchs to determine the future of humanity," Sanders wrote.
The remarks marked another instance of Sanders criticising Musk's political influence and the concentration of wealth and power in the hands of billionaires.
Musk, the founder of SpaceX and Tesla, has faced repeated criticism from Sanders over his political spending.
Earlier, the US senator accused the billionaire of using his wealth to influence American politics and support efforts to keep Republicans in control of Congress.
In an earlier post on X on Monday, Sanders said Musk had spent USD 290 million to help elect US President Donald Trump and was subsequently spending hundreds of millions of dollars to support Republican candidates ahead of the midterm elections.
"Elon Musk spent $290 million to elect Trump. It paid off. Since his election, Musk got $696 billion richer & became the world’s 1st trillionaire. But that’s not enough. Now, Musk is spending $366 million to keep Republicans in control of Congress. STOP MUSK. STOP OLIGARCHY," Sanders said.
The New York Times had reported that Musk spent USD 276 million since July alone, including USD 158 million for a super PAC focused on Republican Senate candidates, making him the largest single donor that year.
Sanders' latest comments on artificial intelligence and calling out "Big Tech Oligarchs" come amid attention surrounding Musk's plans to rename SpaceXAI as SpaceXSI, following US President Donald Trump's executive order directing executive branch departments and agencies to use the terms "Super Intelligence" and "SI" in official communications and policy documents.
On October 5, Musk confirmed the proposed change in a post on X while responding to a user who suggested renaming the company.
"Yes, we will make that change," Musk said in reply to the suggestion.
In another post, he added, "No more AI. SI, it’s better."
The rebranding followed Trump's executive order titled "Inaugurating the Era of Super Intelligence", signed on September 29, which directs federal departments and agencies to use the terms "Super Intelligence" and "SI" in official correspondence, public communications, policy documents and non-statutory documents.
Sanders' criticism of Musk's political spending and his warning against the influence of technology billionaires have brought campaign finance reform and AI regulation into the same debate, as the United States approaches its midterm elections.
His comments call for greater limits on the political influence of wealthy individuals and corporate interests, alongside stronger public safeguards for emerging technologies. (ANI)
Bernie Sanders calls out oligarchic influence in ‘corrupt’ US campaign finance system, cites Musk's election funding
