Musk may endorse a 2024 candidate "in final stretch," he tells Don Lemon

Driving the news: "I may, in the final stretch, endorse a candidate, but I don't know yet," Musk said.

• "I want to make a considered decision before the election, and if I do decide to endorse a candidate, then I will explain exactly why."

The big picture: Musk has previously said he will not donate to either President Biden or former President Trump's campaigns.

• "While I'll voice my opinion, I don't want to put a thumb on the scale monetarily that is significant," he told Lemon.
• He said he will not help Trump with his mounting legal fees.

Context: Musk has criticized the Biden administration's handling of immigration, and recently doubled down on racist and right-wing conspiracy theories.

Between the lines: Despite his views, Musk has not yet explicitly said that he is pro-Trump — but he has made his disagreements with Biden's policies known.

• "I'm leaning away from Biden," Musk told Lemon. "I've made no secret of that."
• Robert F. Kennedy's supporters hope that Musk will support his long-shot independent bid for the White House, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Zoom out: Lemon, previously one of CNN's most popular primetime anchors, was fired from the network in 2023.

• Lemon said he had agreed to a distribution deal with X for his new program, "The Don Lemon Show," but that deal was canceled by Musk after the interview.
• At the start of the video released Monday, Lemon said his plan has always been to release the show across several platforms.
• "Contrary to what you might have heard, we weren't canceled by X," Lemon said in the video. "Yes, after months of begging me, wooing me to offer some exclusive content on his platform, Elon Musk decided to scrap the deal."

Go deeper:

• Don Lemon says Elon Musk canceled his new show after "tense" interview
• The Republicanization of Elon Musk