Elon Musk Slams Bernie Sanders on Twitter: 'I Forgot You Were Still Alive' The two duked it out after Sanders tweeted about taxing America's wealthiest.

By Emily Rella

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Bloomberg | Getty Images

Elon Musk is back at it on Twitter, except this time the target of his snarky comments and not-so-subtle insults isn't fellow Billionaire Jeff Bezos.

In fact, the Tesla CEO took to the social media platform to fire away at quite a (seemingly random) new public enemy — Senator and former Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.

The Twitter riff started from a Tweet that Sanders posted on Saturday.

"We must demand that the extremely wealthy pay their fair share," he said. "Period."

The Tweet came days after Musk sold around $6.9 billion of his own Tesla stock (around 4% of the shares he holds directly) after polling his Twitter followers last week about whether or not he should sell 10% of his shares in the company.

Related: Elon Musk Sinks Tesla Shares With Contentious Twitter Poll

58% of those who voted said yes.

By only owning stock in Tesla and not taking an annual cash salary or bonus, Musk does not have to pay personal taxes on his shares unless he sells them.

Clearly Sanders' quip struck a nerve with Musk.

"I keep forgetting that you're still alive," Musk wrote in response to the senator in one of two Tweets. "Want me to sell more stock, Bernie? Just say the word …"

Sanders, who is the chair of the Senate budget committee, has proposed several policies that would tax the country's wealthiest, most notably the top 0.1% which would include Musk, Bezos and other billionaires.

Related: Senate Democrats Unveil Plan to Hit 700 Billionaires With Major Tax Hikes

Musk has long opposed these proposals, including the Billionaires Income Tax that was proposed by Democratic Senator Ron Wyden (Oregon) in an effort to tax U.S. billionaires on their investments.

Musk continued to troll Twitter by responding to some of his follower's commentary on the interaction and on Sanders.

"The federal budget deficit is $2.7 trillion," one user wrote while tagging Musk. "The "Pay your fair share' thing is kind of a distraction because you can't find $2.7 trillion in revenue just from taxing billionaires."

"Exactly," the Tesla CEO responded.

He also called Sanders a "taker, not a maker" and responded a thumbs-up emoji to one follower who suggested that Sanders send an "itemized list" to Musk and other Americans that explains where the allocated tax money that's being proposed would go.

Musk's estimated net worth was $271.5B as of Monday morning.

Related: Elon Musk Sells $5 Billion in Tesla Stock

Emily Rella

Senior News Writer

Emily Rella is a Senior News Writer at Entrepreneur.com. Previously, she was an editor at Verizon Media. Her coverage spans features, business, lifestyle, tech, entertainment, and lifestyle. She is a 2015 graduate of Boston College and a Ridgefield, CT native. Find her on Twitter at @EmilyKRella.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Editor's Pick

Business News

JPMorgan Shuts Down Internal Message Board Comments After Employees React to Return-to-Office Mandate

Employees were given the option to leave comments about the RTO mandate with their first and last names on display — and they did not hold back.

Innovation

4 Ways Market Leaders Use Innovation to Foster Business Growth

Forward-thinkers constantly strive to diversify and streamline their products and services, turning novelties into commodities desired by many.

Business Ideas

70 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2025

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2025.

Business News

The FTC Is Readying a Case Against the Largest U.S. Apartment Landlord. Here's Why.

The issue is with fees that allegedly weren't disclosed in advertisements for rental units.

Business Culture

What Every Business Leader Can Learn From Dutch Bros' People-First Culture

The coffee chain is turning employees into owners of the customer experience.

Business News

'I Want the Best People on Our Teams': Meta Is Laying Off More Than 3,000, CEO Mark Zuckerberg Calls for 'Extensive Performance-Based Cuts' — Read the Memo

In an internal memo shared on Tuesday, Zuckerberg said it's "going to be an intense year" at the company.