PoliticusUSA is brought to you ad-free thanks to the support of our readers. Please support our work by becoming a subscriber.
Democrats are turning up the pressure on Elon Musk and Republicans in Congress. At a House Oversight Committee hearing Rep. Connolly said:
In its first two weeks, The Trump Administration has ordered a hiring freeze on all federal civilian positions; ordered all federal employees back to the office full-time; paved the way to purge more than 100,000 non-partisan career civil servants and replace them with political loyalists, and waged war on our nation’s commitment to civil rights by eviscerating diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.
The new Administration also ordered the politicization of the Senior Executive Service, forced employees to surveil and report on colleagues, and fired the Democratic Commissioners of the National Labor Relations Board and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. They administered loyalty tests to career civil servants at the National Security Council; granted security clearances to incoming White House officials without vetting them; reportedly violated cybersecurity, procurement, and privacy laws by recklessly handling federal systems and data; and attempted a late-night purge of 17 nonpartisan inspectors general—a brazenly illegal attack that will only provide cover for the corruption that inevitably will ensue.
The Trump Administration also ordered a freeze of federal grants, loans, and other financial assistance programs. Immediately after the funding freeze was issued, Medicaid and Head Start reported disruptions, and some of FEMA’s online portals were cut off. Although the freeze was halted by a judge and then rescinded by the Administration, we saw in only 48 hours how willing the Trump Administration is to threaten the health, safety, and security of all Americans in service of its unlawful and partisan agenda.
If these initiatives sound familiar, it’s because many of them are ripped right out of the Project 2025 playbook. Remember that deeply unpopular tome that Trump tried desperately to distance himself from during the campaign? Many of these executive orders mirror Project 2025 proposals, and at least four prominent Project 2025 authors now have top positions in the Administration. Trump’s disavowal of Project 2025 was just part of the con.
President Trump and Elon Musk are using a wrecking ball to systematically dismember our government piece by piece. The American people deserve better, and we in Congress have a constitutional duty to uphold the laws that we created. We must protect the government workers, programs, and services that the future of this country depends on and stop this unconstitutional assault on our government.
Connelly then motioned to subpoena Musk, “It’s a puzzling role for many people, certainly on this side of the aisle, and I think for some on yours. Who is this unelected billionaire that he can attempt to dismantle federal agencies, fire people, transfer them, offer them early retirement, and have sweeping reform, changes to agencies without any congressional review, oversight, or concurrence? Therefore, Mr. Chairman, given his prominence, And his importance, I move that the committee subpoena Elon Musk to come before it as a witness at the earliest possible moment.”
Video:
Musk can hide behind the slim Republican House majority for now, but the clock is ticking. Democrats have quickly caught on to the game and are zeroing in on Elon Musk.
Musk is the weak link and the most easily disposable person in Trump’s orbit once things start to go wrong.
It will be a great day for America when Elon Musk is finally forced to show up and testify, whether that day comes soon or Democrats have to wait until they win back the House majority.
Elon Musk doesn’t understand politics, but a storm is brewing, and he may soon get a lesson from the school of political hard knocks.