Dem
47
GOP
53
Tesla's stock has cratered ever since Elon Musk stopped tending the store and became Trump's pet DOGEy. Some critics have said he is stupid to have stopped minding the store and not having anyone run Tesla. But maybe they are all wrong. He has many irons in the fire, after all.
In particular, the federal government is planning to spend $42 billion to bring high-speed Internet to rural areas. And how are they going to do it? Musk has an idea: Give him a $42 billion contract to do it using his Starlink system of satellites. In addition, he has pushed NASA to focus on putting people on Mars, a project 100x more complicated than putting men on the moon, and with little payoff compared to putting rovers and instruments on Mars. But SpaceX would be happy to get a big fat contract to try.
In short, Musk's foray into government isn't only about firing people. It is also about browbeating government officials to give his companies very lucrative contracts, especially space-related contracts for SpaceX. This is an enormous return on investment for pumping $300 million into Donald Trump's campaign. Danielle Brian, the executive director of Project on Government Oversight, a nonprofit that tracks federal contracts, said: "The abuse of power and corruption that is spreading across federal agencies because of Musk's dual roles is horrifying."
Musk gaining huge contracts at the expense of competitors like Boeing and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin could lead to a backlash. Most voters can't define corruption, but with a nod to Potter Stewart, they know it when they see it. Musk giving Trump $300 million for his campaign and then getting federal space contracts worth tens of billions of dollars probably doesn't pass the smell test. This is something Democrats could be harping on to take down Musk. (V)