I think it‘s weirder, TBH. He‘s a breeder and a misogynist. He wants to do the world a favour by spreading his superior genes as widely as possible so that the next generation is blessed with his amazing intelligence. And of course that has to happen via boy-childs, because girl-childs are inferior and only fit for breeding.

And his public transphobia started in earnest when his daughter came out. Because how dare she take a boy-child away from him and replace them with an icky girl?

I don‘t know what‘s going on inside his head. But my belief is that that‘s what it‘s really about.

That, and there‘s a more directly personal element. When his daughter filed to legally change her name she said that he was a neglectful father and that she no longer wanted to be associated with him. It was at this point that his anti-trans rhetoric took off. Bear in mind that he consented to her gender-affirming care when she was too young to not need a parent‘s permission. He claims he was „tricked“ but she says that he understood fully what he was consenting to. Again, I can‘t know the truth, but I have a million reasons to consider Musk a liar and none to consider her one.

I think he genuinely hates trans people, but I think that he wouldn‘t have had he not had a trans daughter who bruised his fragile ego. And I think that his breeding kink, scientific racism, narcissism, and misogyny feed in to it nicely.

Again, I don‘t know what‘s going on inside his head, but I am strongly of the opinion that had his daughter never a) transitioned or b) brused his ego, he would not be anti-trans in the way that he is now. He‘d probably still be anti-trans because that‘s one of the key right-wing lines of attack, but I don‘t think it would be a particularly big issue for him.