The Toxicity is the Point

Elon Musk didn't bring his four-year-old son to the White House to soften his image—quite the opposite.

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Among so many displays of norm-defying behavior from Elon Musk—from his “Heil Hitler” salute at the inauguration to his co-option of the Neo-Nazi “14” symbolism on X—it’s a challenge to pick the most egregious. But a contender at this time is Musk’s bringing his four year-old son, X, to the oval office on February 11. Little X—christened X Æ A-Xii— picked his nose, wiped it on the president’s desk, and seemingly whispered that he needed to pee to the president. (In other words, he behaved exactly like a four-year-old.) Trump looked less than impressed for the duration of the press conference.

Obviously, this isn’t a case of Musk—the richest man in the world—not being able to find a babysitter, or even an attempt to set up a photo op. What is going on is much more insidious—and indicative of what we are dealing with.

Many commentators have pointed out that, if a woman had brought their child to a meeting with the president, she would have been jumped on rather than lauded as a good father. True enough, but Musk wasn’t lauded as a good father, at least by most people: the act was seen as a breach of the strong social norm that, when the president gives you their time, and stages a press conference including you, you should give them your full attention. And whether or not that is a healthy norm—a question I’ll leave for another day—it admits of few exceptions. (Musk also defied the strict standard Oval Office dress code of a suit and tie for male visitors.)

Some commentary suggested that, by bringing his son, Musk was trying to improve his image:

Emily in Your Phone

, author of Democracy in Retrograde, told Rolling Stone that Lil X was functioning as a prop “to deflect from the obvious harm that [Musk’s] trying to inflict on the U.S. government and the American people.” Cultural critic and novelist

Jo Piazza

’s diagnosis was similar: Musk was using his son as a way to soften and enhance his public persona, just like a parenting influencer. “Elon Musk is very clearly trying to make himself seem more human because, right now, he’s one of the most hated figures in America. It’s exactly like a parenting influencer using their kid to enhance their brand and to get attention.”

Much as I respect and enjoy both these commentators, I disagree with them in this case: Musk’s display is something else entirely. Something very ominous.