In Rousing Press Conference, Progressive Democrats Say It's Time to 'Fire Elon Musk'
"It's time for all of us to get off the mat and get back in the ring. We're going to fight smarter. We are going to fight harder," the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus said.
Rep. Greg Casar, D-Texas, chair of the of Congressional Progressive Caucus, speaks during a news conference in the Capitol Visitor Center to oppose Elon Musk's influence over various federal agencies, on Thursday, February 6, 2025.
(Photo: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Eloise Goldsmith
Feb 06, 2025
COMMON DREAMS
"We're here to say with one voice: Fire Elon Musk," said Rep. Greg Casar of Texas, kicking off a Congressional Progressive Caucus press conference on Thursday which brought some of the fighting spirit that Democrats have been accused of lacking in recent weeks.
Caucus members gave remarks denouncing billionaire and GOP megadonor Elon Musk, whose so-called Department of Government Efficiency has infiltrated multiple federal agencies with the aim of carrying out cuts to spending and personnel, for engaging in an "illegal power grab." Casar, who is the chair of the caucus, told reporters that they would use "every legislative, judicial, and public pressure tool at [their] disposal as members of Congress" in an effort to get rid of Musk.
"Many Democrats need a time to soul search, to grieve, to think, but that time has ended," Casar said. "It's time for all of us to get off the mat and get back in the ring. We're going to fight smarter. We are going to fight harder."
Musk and his associates at DOGE now have moved to exert influence over agencies such as the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Department of Education, the Office of Personnel Management, and the Treasury Department. The Wall Street Journalreported Wednesday that representatives at DOGE have also secured access to key payment and contracting systems at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and are "searching agency payment systems for fraud."
Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-N.Y.) called out House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) for failing to have the "courage to stand up and defend the integrity of the legislative branch" in the face of Musk and Trump's broadsides against federal agencies, which in some cases appear illegal. "This is not only unethical, it is illegal and unconstitutional," she said.
Representatives of the caucus also said that there will be an attempt to pressure Republicans on the House Oversight Committee, which has a Republican majority, to join Democrats in subpoenaing Musk to come testify before the panel. Ranking member of the committee, Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), brought a motion on Wednesday to subpoena Musk to testify before the committee which failed in a 20-19 vote along party lines, according to Politico.
"We only lost that vote by one vote," said Casar. "We just need to pressure, in that case, just one Republican to have a spine and be willing to hear from Elon Musk."
Meanwhile, the day before the press conference, over 100 civil society groups sent a letter to congressional leaders demanding that Congress immediately act to investigate the full extent of actions taken by Musk and representatives at DOGE.
The groups that signed the letter include the labor union SEIU, the environmental group Greenpeace USA, the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, and others.
"Millions of Americans are likely to be harmed if Elon Musk and DOGE are allowed to continue to infiltrate and take over critical government systems," the according to the letter, which says Congress should probe whether Musk and associates at DOGE have violated multiple temporary restraining orders issued by district courts in response to a late January memo from the Office of Management and Budget attempting to freeze funding for federal grants and other programs, among other concerns.
"What we have seen from Elon Musk and DOGE indicates an astounding disregard for the law," the letter concludes.
The Trump administration, Musk, and DOGE are facing resistance in court. Yesterday, the AFL-CIO and four unions filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against DOGE and acting Labor Secretary Vince Micone aimed at keeping DOGE out of the Department of Labor. Two unions and an advocacy group sued Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and the Treasury Department on Monday for giving DOGE access to a sensitive payment system, citing privacy concerns.
Also Wednesday, thousands turned out for grassroots-organized, anti-Trump rallies around the United States.
Feb 06, 2025
COMMON DREAMS
"We're here to say with one voice: Fire Elon Musk," said Rep. Greg Casar of Texas, kicking off a Congressional Progressive Caucus press conference on Thursday which brought some of the fighting spirit that Democrats have been accused of lacking in recent weeks.
Caucus members gave remarks denouncing billionaire and GOP megadonor Elon Musk, whose so-called Department of Government Efficiency has infiltrated multiple federal agencies with the aim of carrying out cuts to spending and personnel, for engaging in an "illegal power grab." Casar, who is the chair of the caucus, told reporters that they would use "every legislative, judicial, and public pressure tool at [their] disposal as members of Congress" in an effort to get rid of Musk.
"Many Democrats need a time to soul search, to grieve, to think, but that time has ended," Casar said. "It's time for all of us to get off the mat and get back in the ring. We're going to fight smarter. We are going to fight harder."
Musk and his associates at DOGE now have moved to exert influence over agencies such as the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Department of Education, the Office of Personnel Management, and the Treasury Department. The Wall Street Journalreported Wednesday that representatives at DOGE have also secured access to key payment and contracting systems at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and are "searching agency payment systems for fraud."
Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-N.Y.) called out House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) for failing to have the "courage to stand up and defend the integrity of the legislative branch" in the face of Musk and Trump's broadsides against federal agencies, which in some cases appear illegal. "This is not only unethical, it is illegal and unconstitutional," she said.
Representatives of the caucus also said that there will be an attempt to pressure Republicans on the House Oversight Committee, which has a Republican majority, to join Democrats in subpoenaing Musk to come testify before the panel. Ranking member of the committee, Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), brought a motion on Wednesday to subpoena Musk to testify before the committee which failed in a 20-19 vote along party lines, according to Politico.
"We only lost that vote by one vote," said Casar. "We just need to pressure, in that case, just one Republican to have a spine and be willing to hear from Elon Musk."
Meanwhile, the day before the press conference, over 100 civil society groups sent a letter to congressional leaders demanding that Congress immediately act to investigate the full extent of actions taken by Musk and representatives at DOGE.
The groups that signed the letter include the labor union SEIU, the environmental group Greenpeace USA, the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, and others.
"Millions of Americans are likely to be harmed if Elon Musk and DOGE are allowed to continue to infiltrate and take over critical government systems," the according to the letter, which says Congress should probe whether Musk and associates at DOGE have violated multiple temporary restraining orders issued by district courts in response to a late January memo from the Office of Management and Budget attempting to freeze funding for federal grants and other programs, among other concerns.
"What we have seen from Elon Musk and DOGE indicates an astounding disregard for the law," the letter concludes.
The Trump administration, Musk, and DOGE are facing resistance in court. Yesterday, the AFL-CIO and four unions filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against DOGE and acting Labor Secretary Vince Micone aimed at keeping DOGE out of the Department of Labor. Two unions and an advocacy group sued Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and the Treasury Department on Monday for giving DOGE access to a sensitive payment system, citing privacy concerns.
Also Wednesday, thousands turned out for grassroots-organized, anti-Trump rallies around the United States.
Musk shields his finances as he hoards private data of millions of Americans: report
February 7, 2025
RAW STORY
Elon Musk vowed "maximum transparency" in his government work but won't even share his financial disclosures, according to a new report.
The tech billionaire has been invited into President Donald Trump's administration to cut government spending and regulation with his so-called Department of Government Efficiency, but the White House will allow him to file a “confidential” financial disclosure" as an unpaid “special government employee," reported the Washington Post.
Special government employees who are paid at or below the level of federal employees with Senior Executive Service status, according to the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, are not required to file a public financial disclosure report.
They may instead file a confidential report if they are expected to “have a substantial role in the formulation of agency policy," which so far Musk has done.
"As a special govt employee, Musk is limited to 130 days of work a year," noted journalist Natalie Alms. "A former White House ethics lawyer has told me that if Musk exceeds that, you can expect lawsuits to make this financial disclosure public."
A White House official told the post that Musk received an ethics briefing this week, and other DOGE staffers will do the same if they haven't already.
DOGE will also attempt to shield their work behind the Presidential Records Act, according to the group's adviser Katie Miller, which would keep their records sealed until 2034, five years after Trump leaves office and eight years after DOGE is scheduled to disband.
However, that claim will almost certainly face a legal challenge, and some observers noted his secrecy while his DOGE lackeys gain access to sensitive private data for federal employees and taxpayers and feed them into artificial intelligence models.
"So just to recap: Elon Musk has all of your personal confidential data," posted the co-executive director of the activist group Indivisible Guide. "And he will not be disclosing any of his information to the American people. One set of rules for Musk and Trump, one set of rules for the rest of us."
Elon Musk vowed "maximum transparency" in his government work but won't even share his financial disclosures, according to a new report.
The tech billionaire has been invited into President Donald Trump's administration to cut government spending and regulation with his so-called Department of Government Efficiency, but the White House will allow him to file a “confidential” financial disclosure" as an unpaid “special government employee," reported the Washington Post.
Special government employees who are paid at or below the level of federal employees with Senior Executive Service status, according to the U.S. Office of Government Ethics, are not required to file a public financial disclosure report.
They may instead file a confidential report if they are expected to “have a substantial role in the formulation of agency policy," which so far Musk has done.
"As a special govt employee, Musk is limited to 130 days of work a year," noted journalist Natalie Alms. "A former White House ethics lawyer has told me that if Musk exceeds that, you can expect lawsuits to make this financial disclosure public."
A White House official told the post that Musk received an ethics briefing this week, and other DOGE staffers will do the same if they haven't already.
DOGE will also attempt to shield their work behind the Presidential Records Act, according to the group's adviser Katie Miller, which would keep their records sealed until 2034, five years after Trump leaves office and eight years after DOGE is scheduled to disband.
However, that claim will almost certainly face a legal challenge, and some observers noted his secrecy while his DOGE lackeys gain access to sensitive private data for federal employees and taxpayers and feed them into artificial intelligence models.
"So just to recap: Elon Musk has all of your personal confidential data," posted the co-executive director of the activist group Indivisible Guide. "And he will not be disclosing any of his information to the American people. One set of rules for Musk and Trump, one set of rules for the rest of us."
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