U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and Elon Musk watch the launch of the sixth check flight of the SpaceX Starship rocket on November 19, 2024 in Brownsville, Texas.
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Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., says Elon Musk needs to be required to adjust to the identical stringent battle of curiosity guidelines that federal workers need to comply with.
Musk, a detailed adviser to President-elect Donald Trump who poured hundreds of thousands into his marketing campaign effort, has been tapped because the co-lead of the president-elect’s authorities effectivity effort.
The exterior group, known as the Department of Government Efficiency, is charged with advising the incoming administration on chopping authorities spending. Musk — the world’s richest man, in keeping with the Bloomberg Billionaires Index — is the CEO of Tesla, SpaceX and the proprietor of the social media website X.
“He both must divest his ongoing pursuits or he must fence off each a part of his recommendation to the president to remain out of areas the place he has clear monetary conflicts,” Warren instructed Morning Edition host Michel Martin, echoing issues she specified by a letter to Trump’s transition crew earlier this week. Musk’s firms acquired vital federal funding and have regulatory points earlier than the federal government.
Warren spoke with NPR about what she sees as Musk’s conflicts of curiosity.
This interview has been frivolously edited for size and readability.
Michel Martin: The emails out of your workplace to the Trump transition crew detailed various potential conflicts of pursuits surrounding Musk’s enterprise pursuits and his apparently shut relationship with Trump. The letter is sort of in depth, however are you able to simply enumerate a few them so individuals know what you are speaking about?
Sen. Elizabeth Warren: Think of it this fashion… Elon Musk owns many firms, together with Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink and X. The federal authorities has many touchpoints with all of these firms, together with a number of federal contracts price billions of {dollars} and plenty of ongoing investigations about whether or not or not these firms have adopted the laws and together with whether or not or not Mr. Musk himself has adopted the legislation. So, there he’s in the midst of all of this interplay with the federal authorities and whispering in Donald Trump’s ear about just about the whole lot. And the priority of the American individuals is, is he truly whispering issues which can be good for the American public or simply issues which can be actually good for Elon Musk?
Martin: From what you describe, I believe what you appear to be saying is that Musk’s pursuits are so in depth that he can’t keep away from conflicts of curiosity. Is that what you are saying?
Warren: Well, the very first thing I’m saying is that is the Trump transition crew’s personal ethics rule. And I’m saying the one factor that is clear in that ethics rule is even the looks of a battle of curiosity is a no no. Mr. Musk can’t be giving recommendation about electrical vehicles, for instance, on the identical time that he has an enormous possession stake in Tesla. He cannot be giving recommendation about federal contracts for SpaceX on the identical time that he is promoting his providers to the federal authorities to launch rockets into house. He cannot be giving recommendation about ravenous the legislation enforcement arms of those regulatory companies on the identical time that they’re investigating Mr. Musk and Mr. Musk’s firms.
Martin: There is an extended historical past of enterprise executives advising presidents informally. I imply, enterprise executives are sometimes invited on presidential missions, for instance. Are you suggesting that there’s something of an order of magnitude totally different about Elon Musk’s relationship with the Trump crew?
Warren: I haven’t got to recommend it, he has been given an official title by the president-elect. This isn’t just the unusual lobbying that a number of individuals present up, together with CEOs, and say, do that factor to assist my enterprise. He has been tasked with the job of rethinking how all components of presidency work, and the Trump administration itself has stated the looks of a battle of curiosity is flawed as a result of they acknowledge that it undercuts individuals’s confidence in how these choices are being made. Are they being made on behalf of the American individuals at massive, or are they being made on behalf of enriching one billionaire?
Martin: So the Trump transition crew has responded to your letter in a way of talking. They’ve responded to a number of information shops by providing the identical assertion. And that assertion, I’m certain you’ve got heard it by now. It’s issued below the identify of Karoline Leavitt, who’s a spokeswoman for that transition. And she referred to you, with what has been seen as a derogatory reference, saying that, “Pocahontas can play political video games and ship toothless letters, however the Trump-Vance transition will proceed to be held to the very best moral and authorized requirements attainable — a normal unfamiliar to a profession politician whose societal affect is 1/1024th of Elon Musk’s.” What do you say to that?
Warren: Look, they’ll name me no matter identify they need. They’re simply seeking to distract from the underlying downside. And that’s they issued one ethics rule saying nobody who’s working within the transition could have even the looks of a battle of curiosity. And this is Elon Musk with each the looks and precise conflicts of curiosity far and wide. And they only do not need to cease and wrestle with that.
Martin: Well, the Trump transition crew appears to be suggesting that they are not going to reply in any respect. They known as it a toothless letter. Is that the case? I imply, do you may have any technique of implementing oversight on this matter, or is the principle instrument of oversight bringing this to public consideration?
Warren: The principal instrument is to carry it to public consideration and to name it out time and again on behalf of the American individuals. Look, the Trump administration took on the dedication to not have individuals who had an look of a battle of curiosity or an precise battle of curiosity. That means it’s now on them to clarify how finest buddy Elon Musk is whispering within the ear of the president of the United States on the identical time that his firms have in depth contracts with the federal authorities and he himself and people firms are below in depth investigation by totally different components of the federal authorities.
