Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., demanded that Tesla CEO Elon Musk be placed under an ethics policy to keep his influence in check and not overstep his role in the incoming Trump administration, The Washington Post reported Monday.
President-elect Donald Trump announced in November that Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy will spearhead the administration's goal of weeding out government inefficiency and wasteful spending. Musk's newfound influence in politics has caused some Democrats to voice concern about potential conflicts of interest.
Warren sent a letter to the Trump's transition team, advising it to keep Musk operating under the General Services Administration rules that prohibit presidential transition team members from advising "on particular matters involving specific parties that affect" business objectives.
"Putting Mr. Musk in a position to influence billions of dollars of government contracts and regulatory enforcement without a stringent conflict of interest agreement in place is an invitation for corruption on a scale not seen in our lifetimes," Warren wrote. "As your Transition Team Ethics Plan makes clear, the role of government is not to line the pockets of the wealthiest Americans; a strong, enforceable ethics plan for the world's richest man is a necessary first step for delivering on that promise."
Musk personally spent nearly $300 million to help elect Trump, and two of his companies, Tesla and Space X, benefit greatly from government contracts and incentives and could be aided further by his presence in drafting new regulatory standards. Incoming White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt fired back at Warren with a slight at her Native American ancestry claims and her lack of contribution to society.
"President Trump has assembled the most impressive and qualified team of innovators, entrepreneurs, and geniuses to advise and staff our government," Leavitt said in a statement. "Pocahontas can play political games and send toothless letters, but the Trump-Vance transition will continue to be held to the highest ethical and legal standards possible – a standard unfamiliar to a career politician whose societal impact is 1/1024th of Elon Musk's."
Warren's letter requests that Musk remove himself from any conversation that may impact any of his companies.
"Moving forward, will he recuse himself from matters affecting Tesla, Space X, X, or any other company he owns or in which he has a substantial investment?" Warren wrote. "Currently, the American public has no way of knowing whether the advice that he is whispering to you in secret is good for the country — or merely good for his own bottom line."
James Morley III ✉
James Morley III is a writer with more than two decades of experience in entertainment, travel, technology, and science and nature.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.