Democratic senators call for investigation into Musk's connections with Russia
Two senior Democratic senators are urging an investigation into SpaceX CEO Elon Musk following media reports regarding his interactions with Russian officials. Read Full Article at RT.com.
TroibNews 
In October, reports surfaced from the Wall Street Journal stating that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk had engaged in discussions with several high-ranking Russian officials, including President Vladimir Putin, in recent years.
This has led to two prominent Democratic senators, Jack Reed, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Jeanne Shaheen, a senior member of the Foreign Relations Committee, calling for an investigation into Musk’s communications. In a letter addressed to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland and Pentagon Inspector General Robert Storch, they expressed their concerns regarding the media allegations on Friday.
Given that Musk oversees extensive U.S. government contracts as the head of SpaceX, the senators emphasized the risk associated with his purported interactions with Russian officials. They pointed out that Musk, who claims to possess top-secret level security clearance, is involved in managing sensitive government contracts, heightening their concerns.
They remarked, “These relationships between a well-known US adversary and Mr. Musk, a beneficiary of billions of dollars in US government funding, pose serious questions regarding Mr. Musk’s reliability as a government contractor and a clearance holder.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov responded to the Wall Street Journal’s pre-election allegations by labeling them as “disinformation.” He clarified that there has reportedly been only one phone call between Musk and Putin in the past, which occurred before 2022, where they discussed Russia's scientific advancements and potential future developments. “There were no contacts between Musk and Putin after that, and all claims otherwise are false,” Peskov stated.
He added that such claims are likely connected to the “extremely confrontational electoral political fight” in the United States.
Following his election victory, former President Donald Trump announced that Musk would lead the future Department of Government Efficiency, aiming to eliminate trillions of dollars in “waste and fraud” in government spending. Trump described the initiative as a way to “dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies.”
Musk has remarked that his role in DOGE “is going to be a revolution.”
Navid Kalantari contributed to this report for TROIB News
This has led to two prominent Democratic senators, Jack Reed, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Jeanne Shaheen, a senior member of the Foreign Relations Committee, calling for an investigation into Musk’s communications. In a letter addressed to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland and Pentagon Inspector General Robert Storch, they expressed their concerns regarding the media allegations on Friday.
Given that Musk oversees extensive U.S. government contracts as the head of SpaceX, the senators emphasized the risk associated with his purported interactions with Russian officials. They pointed out that Musk, who claims to possess top-secret level security clearance, is involved in managing sensitive government contracts, heightening their concerns.
They remarked, “These relationships between a well-known US adversary and Mr. Musk, a beneficiary of billions of dollars in US government funding, pose serious questions regarding Mr. Musk’s reliability as a government contractor and a clearance holder.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov responded to the Wall Street Journal’s pre-election allegations by labeling them as “disinformation.” He clarified that there has reportedly been only one phone call between Musk and Putin in the past, which occurred before 2022, where they discussed Russia's scientific advancements and potential future developments. “There were no contacts between Musk and Putin after that, and all claims otherwise are false,” Peskov stated.
He added that such claims are likely connected to the “extremely confrontational electoral political fight” in the United States.
Following his election victory, former President Donald Trump announced that Musk would lead the future Department of Government Efficiency, aiming to eliminate trillions of dollars in “waste and fraud” in government spending. Trump described the initiative as a way to “dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies.”
Musk has remarked that his role in DOGE “is going to be a revolution.”
Navid Kalantari contributed to this report for TROIB News
