Billionaire tech mogul Elon Musk spent July 4 publicly plotting a strategy for his proposed “America Party” to gain control of the balance of power in Washington following next year’s midterm elections.

American history is littered with third-party bids that flared brightly only to fizzle out, he explained. George Wallace carried five Southern states in 1968 and Ross Perot grabbed nearly 19% of the popular vote in 1992 — yet neither cracked the two-party hold on the presidency.