Musk Is Trump's Disposable Tyrant
Trump Is Using Him, Then Will Bury Him.
In The Prince, Niccolò Machiavelli tells the story of Cesare Borgia and his enforcer, Remirro de Orco. Borgia had a problem—Romagna was lawless, corrupt, impossible to control. So he brought in de Orco, a ruthless enforcer who cleaned up the region with brutal efficiency. The people hated him.
Once the job was done, Borgia had him executed in the public square. The message was clear: I have saved you from the tyrant.
It worked.
Now, look at Trump and Musk. A modern-day Borgia and de Orco.
Musk has dug himself deep inside the U.S. government, running the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) like a personal startup. Restructuring, automating, consolidating power, making himself indispensable. But there’s a catch—he’s also taking all the heat. Every time he tinkers with federal agencies or Treasury systems, the resentment builds.
Trump is watching.
For now, Musk is useful. He’s doing the dirty work. He’s the lightning rod. But the second his influence overshadows Trump, or the backlash threatens Trump’s standing, the purge begins.
How does it end for Musk?
Best case: Musk steps back quietly. Still rich, but stripped of power.
Worst case: Trump turns on him, blames him for every unpopular decision, and exiles him.
Either way, Trump wins.
The playbook hasn’t changed in 500 years. The only question is whether Musk sees it coming—or if he ends up like de Orco, gutted in the public square while Trump claims he saved the Republic.
History repeats itself—whether in politics or between men and women. When your value runs out, so do your options.
My novel, The Desert Road of Night, which breaks down power dynamics in a world that seemingly only value men for their utility and women for their body, is available for preorder on Amazon.