Cardi B in feud with Elon Musk after he called her a Kamala Harris ‘puppet’

Cardi B has hit back at Elon Musk's claim that she was "fed words" at a Kamala Harris rally in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on November 1. Photo / Getty Images / Composite

Rapper Cardi B is locked in a feud with Elon Musk after he called her a “puppet” of Vice-President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate in the upcoming US election.

The billionaire businessman, 53, accused Cardi B, born Belcalis Almanzar, of being “fed words” during her speech at Harris’ rally in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on Friday (local time) after the teleprompter broke, leaving the rapper to awkwardly wait for more than a minute.

Musk, who publicly announced his endorsement of former US president and Republican candidate Donald Trump on July 13, reposted footage of the incident to his social media platform X with the caption: “Another puppet who can’t even talk without being fed the words.

“The Kamala campaign has no authenticity or true empathy.”

Cardi B's teleprompter was broken and she had no idea what to do for over a minute until someone ran on the stage to give her a phone to read off.pic.twitter.com/XPRfgz3a99

— Talking Lizard 🦎 (@TalkingLizardv2) November 2, 2024

Cardi B swiftly defended herself, accusing the Tesla and SpaceX CEO of “knowing nothing” about the “American struggle”.

“I’m not a puppet Elon ... I’m a daughter of two immigrant parents that had to work their a** off to provide for me! I’m a product of welfare, I’m a product of section 8, I’m a product of poverty and I’m a product of what happens when the system is set up against you [sic],” she responded.

“But you don’t know nothing about that. You don’t know not one thing about the American struggle.”

She then quipped: “PS fix my algorithm.”

I’m not a puppet Elon.. I’m a daughter of two immigrant parents that had to work their ass off to provide for me! I’m a product of welfare, I’m a product of section 8, I’m a product of poverty and I’m a product of what happens when the system is set up against you….But you don’t… https://t.co/BBYQ2O0KYJ

— Cardi B (@iamcardib) November 2, 2024

The WAP rapper, 32, ended up reading the rest of her speech from a smartphone following the teleprompter mishap.

“I’ve been waiting for this moment my whole life. I take seriously the call to show up, to speak out, and to share a message that’s been on my heart for a while now,” Cardi declared during the oration.

“Like Kamala Harris, I’ve been the underdog, underestimated, and had my success belittled. Women have to work 10 times harder and still face questions about how we achieved success. I can’t stand a bully, but just like Kamala, I always stand up to one,” she continued.

The rapper said she had no plans to vote for incumbent president Joe Biden or Trump, but Harris - who will become the first black female president of the United States if she is successful in the November 5 election - changed her “mind completely”.

Cardi B’s full speech at Kamala Harris’ rally in Milwaukee. pic.twitter.com/SWBkqhWNKA

— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) November 2, 2024

“I didn’t have faith in any candidates until she joined and spoke the words I wanted to hear about the future of this country,” she went on.

“I believe every word she says. She’s passionate, compassionate, empathetic, and most importantly, she’s realistic. Kamala recognises that this country is at risk, and that we need to strengthen our economy and address the rising cost of living.

“Protection for women – especially regarding maternal and mental healthcare – is not about telling us what to do with our bodies. It’s about supporting us and providing the care we need for our choices.

“People like Donald Trump don’t believe women deserve rights. When those rights are threatened, he disappears,” she declared.

“If his definition of protection means restricting our choices and ensuring our daughters have fewer rights than our mothers, then I don’t want it.”

Cardi B arrives during a campaign rally for Democratic presidential nominee, US Vice-President Kamala Harris, at the Wisconsin State Fair Park. Photo / Getty Images

She continued: “Hustling women out of their rights is disgraceful. Hustling Americans out of their hard-earned money by selling Trump watches, Trump sneakers, Trump Bibles … do we really trust this man with our economy? A man who only cares about getting rich and cutting taxes for his billionaire friends. I don’t even get a tax cut.”

During his rally in Gastonia, North Carolina over the weekend, Trump reiterated earlier comments that women would be protected under his leadership, whether they “like it or not”.

“I will protect our women,” Trump said on Sunday (NZ time). “I think the women love me.

“I believe that women have to be protected. Men have to be, children, everybody. But women have to be protected where they’re at home in suburbia.”

- Additional reporting by NZ Herald.