Martina Navratilova has lashed out at Elon Musk over his role in influencing the US Congress to slash funding for child cancer research. Musk, who heavily campaigned for Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election and has been named the co-chair of the Department of Government Efficiency by the President-elect, seemingly wielded his political influence to shut down a bipartisan proposal.
In an effort to stop a government shutdown, a budget proposal was introduced in the US Congress to maintain federal operations and fund essential programs. However, Elon Musk took to X (formerly Twitter) and asserted that the "bill should not pass," calling for a legislative freeze until Trump was inaugurated in January.
With Donald Trump joining Musk in opposing the bill, a new stripped-down proposal was introduced by the Republicans, which excluded $190 million allocated for the 'Give Kids a Chance' program for child cancer research. Musk publicly endorsed the revised proposal, celebrating that "the terrible bill was dead."
Martina Navratilova, who has never shied away from criticizing Elon Musk, did not hold back in her response to his involvement. The former World No. 1 labeled him a "psychopath" and denounced him for his display of "cruelty."
"A psychopath by proxy, that’s who. The cruelty is the point," Navratilova posted on X.
Navratilova was also dismayed by Musk seemingly stretching his political influence across the pond by reportedly donating $100 million to the UK's Reform Party, led by Nigel Farage.
The former World No. 1 accused the $460-billion tech mogul of attempting to "buy the world" and urged British citizens to resist his sway.
"Musk wants to buy the world. What or who will stop him? Voters. Though that didn’t work out so well here. Hopefully Brits and others are smarter than us Americans...," Martina Navratilova wrote.
Martina Navratilova: "Elon Musk has rigged the system in a big way"
Martina Navratilova has been at odds with Elon Musk since he purchased the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, in 2022. The 18-time Grand Slam champion, who is very active on the platform, has frequently criticized Musk's management and even accused him of "destroying" the site.
However, Navratilova recently suggested buying Twitter was Musk's "best investment ever," as it had allowed him to "rig the system" to his advantage.
"Elon has rigged the system in a big way. Buying twitter was his best investment ever," Navratilova wrote.
The former World No. 1 recently also expressed her frustration with Musk over the technical issues with the platform under his ownership, lamenting the "daily occurrence" of her direct messages from followers simply "disappearing."