Elon Musk’s suggestion that the United States should leave the United Nations has sent the usual suspects into a frenzy. The idea that America might step away from this sacred institution of globalism is, to them, unthinkable. But Musk is saying what many Americans—especially those who support the MAGA movement—have long realized: The UN and American sovereignty can no longer coexist.

The UN was founded with good intentions. In the aftermath of World War II, it was meant to prevent global conflicts, promote diplomacy, and protect human rights. But over time, it has mutated into something far different—a platform where America’s adversaries manipulate the system, a bureaucracy that siphons billions from U.S. taxpayers while routinely undermining American interests. 

The UN is no longer a fair institution; it’s a stacked deck, and the United States keeps playing a losing hand. If it truly stood for peace and fairness, remaining involved might make sense. But reality paints a different picture. For anyone in doubt, let us examine some facts.

The UN Human Rights Council makes an absolute mockery of its name. It is routinely packed with some of the world’s worst human rights violators. This includes China, where political opponents vanish, forced labor camps operate on an industrial scale, and entire ethnic groups endure systematic persecution. It also includes Cuba, a regime that imprisons dissenters, bans independent media, and crushes even the smallest acts of defiance. Meanwhile, Venezuela unleashes death squads to maintain control as millions flee starvation and chaos. And then there’s Saudi Arabia, where public executions remain a sordid spectacle, women are still treated as second-class citizens, and journalists who have the courage to speak out are brutally silenced. It might sound obvious, but it needs to be said: these regimes don’t join the council to uphold human rights; they join to protect themselves from people noticing that they don’t. They block investigations, avoid scrutiny, and shift blame while continuing their abuses unchecked. Rather than exposing injustice, the council enables it, transforming what should be a force for justice into yet another arm of global corruption.

Then there’s the UN General Assembly, where anti-American resolutions are routine and accountability for the world’s worst regimes is virtually nonexistent. The UN condemns democratic nations far more regularly than brutal dictatorships like North Korea, Iran, and Syria—combined. Why? Because the UN is controlled by a bloc of authoritarian regimes and weak Western governments, spineless souls that would rather posture and deflect than confront real atrocities. As the UN’s largest financial backer, the U.S. is repaid with constant vilification, while its enemies exploit the system with impunity. You don’t have to support President Trump or Musk to see how outrageous this is.

The UN’s climate agenda, another exercise in Machiavellian-like manipulation, also deserves scrutiny. The UN constantly demands that the United States do more to combat climate change while giving countries like China, the world’s largest polluter, a free pass. Under UN agreements, China is still classified as a “developing nation,” meaning it faces fewer restrictions than the U.S., despite being the second-largest economy in the world. Meanwhile, industrial giants like India, Pakistan, and Indonesia churn out toxic emissions, dump industrial waste into rivers and oceans, and build coal plants at a breakneck pace—all while receiving special treatment from the UN. Despite having some of the strictest environmental regulations in the world, the U.S. is pressured to dismantle its energy sector, tax its citizens into submission, and pay for the sins of the worst polluters on Earth. Again, you don’t need to be a MAGA supporter to see how utterly absurd this is.

And let’s not forget the UN peacekeeping disasters. Time and again, UN peacekeeping forces have proven not just incompetent but outright criminal. In places like Haiti and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, UN personnel have been implicated in widespread sexual abuse and exploitation, preying on the very people they were sent to protect. Victims—many of them children—were left powerless as their abusers faced no real consequences, shielded by UN bureaucracy and diplomatic immunity. In Rwanda, peacekeepers stood by as nearly a million people were slaughtered in just 100 days, their mandates restricting them from intervening. And yet, despite this bloodstained record, the world is expected to trust this organization with even greater power and authority. 

The UN has mastered a simple strategy: take American money, demand American military intervention when convenient, but attack American policies and values at every opportunity. For those who claim that leaving the UN would be irresponsible, let me ask the following: Is America’s duty to the world or to its own people? A healthy relationship is built on mutual respect and fairness, but the UN treats America like a guilt-ridden ATM, always expected to give, never allowed to question where the money goes. Would you tell a person trapped in an emotionally abusive, exploitative relationship to stay because of “duty”? Of course not. You’d tell them to leave, reclaim their dignity, and stop being taken advantage of. Elon Musk’s call to exit the UN is entirely rational. The U.S. has outgrown this outdated, broken institution. It’s time to stop rewarding an organization that takes America’s money, attacks its values, and enables its enemies. The UN needs America, but America doesn’t need the UN.