Elon Musk’s Self-Serving Election Influence: Tilting the 2024 Election to Escape Corporate Accountability
Elon Musk isn’t running for office in 2024. But Musk himself may still be the main beneficiary of his own political spending.
Whatever outlandish conspiracies and sci-fi visions Musk espouses at any moment, the man is, among other things, an executive with a net worth of nearly $250 billion.
Enforcement priorities can shift significantly when administrations change. Musk’s self-serving desire to thwart the numerous civil and criminal investigations into his businesses seems a likely reason for the billionaire’s increased involvement in electoral politics, which includes campaign rally appearances, the creation of a super PAC, and promising payments of $1 million to select Pennsylvania citizens who sign a petition “in favor of free speech and the right to bear arms” and prove they voted in the 2024 election.
At least three of Musk’s businesses are currently under scrutiny for alleged misconduct by at least nine federal agencies.
Tesla is being investigated by:
- the Department of Justice (DOJ),
- the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC),
- the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), and
- the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission (EEOC).
X (formerly Twitter) is under investigation by:
- the SEC,
- and faces scrutiny from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) following a 2011 consent decree.
SpaceX is facing allegations from:
- the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB),
- the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA),
- the DOJ, and
- has recently been charged with violations by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
“There needs [to be] comprehensive deregulation. Period,” Musk posted on X (formerly Twitter) last October.
Despite Musk’s preference for light touch enforcement against businesses that break the law – especially laws protecting workers, consumers, and the environment – the world’s richest man favors tough enforcement against low-level offenses associated with poverty.
A Wall Street Journal story reveals the billionaire secretly backed an unsuccessful Dark Money campaign to unseat a Democratic district attorney in Austin, Texas. The district attorney is a supporter of bipartisan criminal justice reforms intended to reduce mass incarceration, and has benefited from support from groups backed by billionaire George Soros. Musk has criticized the Soros efforts, saying “He’s doing things that erode the fabric of civilization—getting DAs elected that refuse to prosecute crime.”
The federal actions against alleged corporate misconduct by Musk businesses that Musk’s political efforts could disrupt include:
Tesla:
- A Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation into Musk-owned electric vehicle corporation Tesla and, potentially, Musk himself over exaggerated claims about the “Full Self-Driving” capability of Tesla vehicles’ “Autopilot” mode may constitute criminal fraud, among other concerns.
- A Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation into whether exaggerated claims about the self-driving capabilities of Tesla vehicles deceived investors.
- Parallel investigations by DOJ and SEC into Tesla plans to construct a “glass house” in Texas as a home for Musk.
- Two National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigations into Tesla – one into reports of power steering losses in certain vehicle models, one into alleged inadequacies to updates intended to address safety problems with Autopilot software.
- An Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) case charging Tesla with racial discrimination and workplace retaliation at a California factory where Black workers allege being subjected to racial slurs and other severe or pervasive racial harassment..
X (formerly Twitter):
- A SEC investigation into Musk’s $44 billion takeover of Twitter, now X. The agency also is seeking sanctions against Musk for failing to testify for the investigation in defiance of a subpoena.
- A Federal Trade Commission (FTC) consent decree Twitter entered in 2011 as part of a settlement for alleged consumer deception and privacy violations remains in effect. Musk reportedly gave orders that would have breached the FTC order were it not for the intervention of his employees.
Space Exploration Technologies Corp (SpaceX):
- The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in September accused SpaceX of repeated pollution discharges in Texas in violation of the Clean Water Act and proposed a consent decree prohibiting further violations and requiring payment of $148,000 in penalties.
- The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in September accused SpaceX of multiple safety violations involving rocket launches in Florida, imposing $633,000 in penalties. Musk has pledged to retaliate against the FAA with a lawsuit accusing the agency of “regulatory overreach.”
- An ongoing complaint before the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) alleges SpaceX illegally fired workers who signed onto a letter publicly criticizing Musk, whose behavior the signers say has harmed the company’s reputation. Musk has retaliated against the worker rights agency with a federal lawsuit challenging its constitutionality.
- A DOJ case accuses SpaceX of discriminating against asylees and refugees in hiring decisions. Musk retaliated with a federal lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the DOJ case. A federal court in Texas issued a temporary stay, pausing the DOJ lawsuit. The DOJ has filed to lift the stay.
“No one is above the law” has become a rallying cry against elite impunity. It’s a rallying cry that must include, in addition to top government officials, the biggest corporations and the wealthiest executives. If self-serving campaigns to the contrary succeed, however, the injustice of America’s two-tiered justice system will only deepen.