Elon Musk, the billionaire tech mogul, allegedly caused a major stir at a lavish White House dinner honouring Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince by asking a fellow guest if the royal was a 'terrorist', according to lipreading reports.
A Controversial Evening at the White House
The incident occurred on Tuesday during an opulent banquet hosted by Donald Trump and his wife Melania for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. This marked the Saudi leader's first visit to the White House in seven years, following the 2018 assassination of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
As reported by The Lip Reader, Musk turned to Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla, took a sip from his glass, and mischievously inquired, 'What is your opinion, is he a terrorist?'. Bourla appeared visibly stunned by the bold question, which cut through the diplomatic niceties of the evening.
Star-Studded Guest List and Royal Welcome
The event attracted a remarkable gathering of global figures from politics, business, and sport. Guests included football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, Donald Trump Jr., Secretary of State Marco Rubio, House Speaker Mike Johnson, and Fox News personalities Bret Baier and Maria Bartiromo.
The business world was represented by an equally impressive roster:
- Apple's Tim Cook
- Nvidia's Jensen Huang
- General Motors' Mary Barra
- Palantir's Alex Karp
- Charles Schwab
Melania Trump paid subtle tribute to the Saudi delegation by wearing a $3,350 green gown from designer Elie Saab. The crown prince received a spectacular welcome typically reserved for America's closest allies, complete with an Air Force flyover featuring F-15 and F-35 fighter jets.
The Shadow of Jamal Khashoggi
The lavish treatment occurred despite the ongoing controversy surrounding Prince Salman's alleged connection to the murder of Jamal Khashoggi. The journalist, a Virginia resident and columnist for the Washington Post, was ambushed by 15 Saudi agents at the country's consulate in Istanbul in 2018. He was suffocated and dismembered, with his remains never recovered.
While the crown prince has consistently denied involvement, US intelligence agencies believe he likely directed the operation. This backdrop made Trump's warm welcome particularly contentious.
During a press interaction, ABC News's Mary Bruce confronted Prince Salman directly, stating: 'you orchestrated the brutal murder of a journalist'. She also noted that '9/11 families are furious that you're here in the Oval Office'.
Trump aggressively defended his guest, labelling Bruce 'fake news' and 'a terrible reporter', even threatening to pull ABC's broadcast license. When eventually addressing the Khashoggi question, Prince Salman called it 'really painful to hear anyone losing his life for no real purpose' and claimed Saudi Arabia had 'improved our system to be sure that nothing happened like that'.
The event highlighted Trump's deepening political and business ties with Saudi Arabia, contrasting sharply with President Biden's more reserved 2022 meeting where he opted for a fist bump rather than a handshake.
