Democratic lawmakers on key house committees have raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest from Elon Musk's dual roles as SpaceX CEO and a special government employee overseeing changes at Nasa and the department of defence, a letter sent to the agencies on Tuesday said.
The letter addressed to secretary of defence Pete Hegseth and Nasa Acting Administrator Janet Petro expressed alarm by House Democrats over Musk's potential conflicts, given his role spearheading the Trump administration's massive federal overhaul through the department of government efficiency (DOGE).
"Mr Musk's dual role creates an inherent conflict of interest between SpaceX's status as a large government contractor and DOGE's influence at agencies overseeing SpaceX contracts, contract bids, and regulations governing the company and its activities," the letter signed by the top Democrats on the House armed services committee and the committee on science, space and technology and others said.
DOGE is currently overseeing significant organisational changes at both the department of defence and Nasa. These changes include the dismissal of probationary defence employees, the cancellation of hundreds of millions of dollars in grants and contracts at Nasa, and the elimination of entire programmes at both agencies.
Simultaneously, SpaceX continues to serve as a large contractor for both the department of defence and Nasa, bidding on and winning additional contracts even after Musk began his work for the Trump administration.
"Because SpaceX performs significant work for the federal government across the national security and civil space architectures, even the perception of a conflict of interest is very troubling, and Mr Musk's influence over the agencies awarding large contracts to his company goes far beyond mere perception," the letter said.
The South African-born billionaire has been at the helm of SpaceX since its founding in 2002. The company has become a major player in the space industry, securing numerous contracts with Nasa and the department of defence.
Reuters
US lawmakers question Musk's dual role at SpaceX and government agency
Democratic lawmakers on key house committees have raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest from Elon Musk's dual roles as SpaceX CEO and a special government employee overseeing changes at Nasa and the department of defence, a letter sent to the agencies on Tuesday said.
The letter addressed to secretary of defence Pete Hegseth and Nasa Acting Administrator Janet Petro expressed alarm by House Democrats over Musk's potential conflicts, given his role spearheading the Trump administration's massive federal overhaul through the department of government efficiency (DOGE).
"Mr Musk's dual role creates an inherent conflict of interest between SpaceX's status as a large government contractor and DOGE's influence at agencies overseeing SpaceX contracts, contract bids, and regulations governing the company and its activities," the letter signed by the top Democrats on the House armed services committee and the committee on science, space and technology and others said.
DOGE is currently overseeing significant organisational changes at both the department of defence and Nasa. These changes include the dismissal of probationary defence employees, the cancellation of hundreds of millions of dollars in grants and contracts at Nasa, and the elimination of entire programmes at both agencies.
Simultaneously, SpaceX continues to serve as a large contractor for both the department of defence and Nasa, bidding on and winning additional contracts even after Musk began his work for the Trump administration.
"Because SpaceX performs significant work for the federal government across the national security and civil space architectures, even the perception of a conflict of interest is very troubling, and Mr Musk's influence over the agencies awarding large contracts to his company goes far beyond mere perception," the letter said.
The South African-born billionaire has been at the helm of SpaceX since its founding in 2002. The company has become a major player in the space industry, securing numerous contracts with Nasa and the department of defence.
Reuters
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