Elon Musk Seizes Treasury Payments, Calls USAID ‘Criminal’ in Shock Power Move
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Hey, everybody. Welcome back to the Elon Musk podcast. This is a show where we discuss the critical crossroads that shape SpaceX, Tesla, X, The Boring Company, and Neuralink. I'm your host, Will Walden.

So what exactly is Elon Musk doing with the US Treasury's payment systems and how did he gain complete access to federal financial operations? Also, he said that the USAID, which said it's a criminal organization, that should die. These are the questions we're going to ask today and we're going to try to answer some of these things.

as his Doge team is actively halting payments to government contractors. This is raising concerns with watchdog groups about the extent of his influence over federal funds.

Now, Elon Musk announced on X that his Department of Government Efficiency is shutting down payments to certain federal contractors, including Lutheran Family Services. He framed the move as an effort to eliminate corruption and waste. He said the corruption and waste is being rooted out in real time. And he claimed the Doge staffers were rapidly shutting down payments to organizations he described as unnecessary or fraudulent.

Now, is it his place to say those things? Is it his place to make that judgment if they're fraudulent or unnecessary? I mean, he's part of the doge now. Government efficiency. But is this illegal? Let me know in the comments if you have them on your podcast platform. Now, the Treasury Department has not confirmed the extent of Musk's access, but his comments suggest he may be able to directly influence payment processing systems.

President Donald Trump had previously tasked Musk with modernizing federal information technology, but Musk's actions appear to extend far beyond that mandate.

Treasury officials have historically maintained that their role is simply to process payments approved by individual agencies based on congressional appropriations. Now, Musk's involvement in government financial operations took a new turn when top security officials at the U.S. Agency of International Development, or USAID, were placed on leave after refusing to grant Doge staffers access to sensitive financial systems.

Now, USAID personnel argued that Doge employees lacked the necessary security clearances to review classified financial data.

Now, Musk responded aggressively, like he does sometimes, calling USAID a criminal organization that should die. This inflammatory statement came when USAID's website temporarily went offline, which further fueled speculation about Musk's expanding influence over federal agencies. USAID has long been responsible for distributing billions of dollars in foreign aid, including humanitarian assistance and economic development programs.

Now, the broader financial infrastructure Musk is targeting handles tens of billions of dollars in daily transactions for the federal government. These systems manage payments for Social Security, Medicare, federal grants, and contracts with private companies. The scale of these transactions raises serious questions about the extent to which Musk's team is making unilateral decisions about where government money flows.

Last week, David LeBrick, the most senior career official at the Treasury Department, stepped down from his role overseeing the Bureau of the Fiscal Service, the division responsible for processing federal payments. His departure followed increasing tensions over Musk's growing involvement in Treasury operations.

Now, while it remains unclear if Musk played a direct role in the resignation, the timing has fueled speculation that Musk's presence alone is creating friction within the federal financial system.

Now, Trump endorsed Musk's actions during a conversation with reporters calling him a big cost cutter. And the former president acknowledged that while he may not always agree with Musk's approach, he believed Musk is doing a great job and is very much into cutting the budget of our federal government, end quote. Now, Trump's comments indicate that Musk's efforts have the backing of his administration, even if they are causing disruptions within federal agencies.

Senator Rob Wyden, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, raised alarms about Musk's access to Treasury systems, stating that Treasury Secretary Scott Besant had granted Doge full authority over payment operations. Wyden specifically pointed out that this could impact Social Security and Medicare benefits, as well as payments to government contractors, including those that directly compete with Musk's own businesses.

now the doge team discovered among other things that payment approval officers at treasury were instructed always to approve payments even to known fraudulent or terrorist groups they literally never denied a payment in their entire career not even once says elon musk though he did not provide evidence for this assertion his post implied that previous treasury officials had exercised little to no oversight in preventing potentially illegal payments

Now, the Treasury Department has a do-not-pay system designed to flag fraudulent transactions. The system was implemented to prevent improper payments, including those to entities with criminal records or outstanding debts to the federal government. And Treasury officials have not commented on whether Musk's allegations of unchecked payments are accurate.

Now, one of DOGE's recent actions involved halting payments by the Department of Health and Human Services, the HHS. The Lutheran Family Services, which is a nonprofit organization that provides aid to refugees and other vulnerable populations, HHS and Lutheran Family Services have not publicly responded to Musk's claim or the decision to suspend their payments.

Musk's critics argue that his efforts could disrupt essential services and raise legal concerns about whether he has the authority to control federal payments. Others worry that his influence over financial systems could lead to conflicts of interest, particularly if payments to competing companies are affected.

Now, the broader question is whether Musk's role in government spending is within legal bounds. Federal law grants agencies authority over their own budgets, with Treasury primarily acting as an administrative entity to just process the payments.

Now, Musk's apparent ability to override those approvals challenges the traditional structure of government financial oversight. Checks and balances, people. That's usually what we do in the United States. And it looks like that might not be happening anymore, according to Elon Musk.

And while Trump and his administration continue to support Musk's efforts, congressional leaders are increasingly scrutinizing his influence. Lawmakers could push for hearings to investigate whether Doge's actions align with legal guidelines and whether Musk's role should be reined in. Still getting around to that fix on your car? You got this. On eBay, you'll find millions of parts guaranteed to fit. Doesn't matter if it's a major engine repair or your first time swapping your windshield wipers.

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Also, let me know in the comments if you think Elon Musk is doing the right thing or the wrong thing here. He's in the right. Let me know why. If he's doing something wrong, also let me know why. But for now, Musk's Doge team is operating with a level of authority that few outside officials seem able to challenge. His claims of rooting out corruption have resonated with some in government.

But the lack of transparency surrounding his actions raises concerns about his accountability and Doge's accountability too. He has power over federal financial operations right now that's drawing scrutiny, particularly as he expands his reach beyond the technology modernization initiative he was originally tasked with by Donald Trump. Now whether his efforts will lead to real cost savings or significant legal challenges remains an open question.

We don't know what he's doing behind the scenes. There's no transparency. And he's cutting off funding for a lot of services.

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