Elon Musk has been making repeated public comments about Social Security. About two weeks back, he described it as a fraudulent financial scheme. More recently, he brought up plans for his Department of Government Efficiency to monitor how the agency spends money.
Musk has also said several times, though without offering any evidence, that Social Security funds are going to undocumented immigrants and people who have already died.
His interest in the Social Security agency became more visible today when a report from three journalists, Theodore Schleifer, Kate Conger and Ryan Mac, revealed that someone close to Musk recently took up a position there.
That individual is Antonio Gracias, a private equity investor who helped Musk during Tesla’s early stages by loaning him $1 million and has vacationed with him in locations such as Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Gracias now working inside the agency could signal that Musk is treating it as a major focus.
He’s one of nine people linked to the Department of Government Efficiency who joined the agency recently, according to the report. Two others are employees at Gracias’ investment firm.
While details about Gracias’ exact role remain unclear, a court document from last week gave some early information about what Musk’s team has been doing inside the agency.
According to The Washington Post, which covered the matter in-depth, a former agency staffer named Tiffany Flick stated that DOGE representatives were asking for sensitive records, including three main points: claims of payments being sent to dead individuals, cases of multiple benefits tied to one Social Security number, and transactions to people without Social Security numbers.
She said all three concerns were based on wrong information. However, these same ideas match false public claims made by both Musk and President Trump, which many Democrats believe are just excuses being used to increase scrutiny and reduce funding.
Republican leaders, including Trump, have repeatedly insisted that they have no intention of cutting Social Security benefits, since they know doing so could lead to political backlash.
“There won’t be any reduction in Social Security or Medicare. That’s just something the left is pushing to create fear,” said Chris LaCivita, a top campaign official for Trump’s 2024 run, during a recent interview with Politico.
Instead of denying Musk’s interest in budget cuts, LaCivita focused on minimizing Musk’s influence. He said Musk does not hold a position that gives him authority over these matters. “He’s not in office. He’s not the president,” LaCivita added. “So he cannot make any of these decisions.”
Musk Visits the NSA
Although Musk has been showing up in many high-profile spaces in Washington, this week marked his first known visit to a top U.S. spy agency. The National Security Agency confirmed that Musk visited on Wednesday, according to its spokesperson.
Among the top two intelligence agencies, the NSA plays a critical role in penetrating global telecom and computer systems. They’re known for being highly effective in this area. Musk might have gone there to discuss ideas on how the agency can function better or possibly to better understand its work.
Julian described the NSA as a large government agency that doesn’t always function efficiently. Since Musk often discusses ways to improve systems, it’s possible he wanted to see where he could apply those ideas.
At the same time, there are concerns that Musk might have personal or business interests that could benefit from the agency’s powerful cyber tools. This agency handles extremely classified material and controls access to the government’s latest intelligence data.
So far, there is no proof Musk is trying to gain access to any of that. Historically, the NSA has avoided giving any outsider open access to such sensitive data. Separately, the United States Postal Service has now entered into a working agreement with Musk’s efficiency department.
They’ve started implementing a plan to cut about 10,000 jobs through voluntary retirement offers. Meanwhile, the American Federation of Government Employees has taken legal action against the Department of Homeland Security.
The union is trying to stop the Trump administration from ending its agreement with Transportation Security Administration employees.
Musk’s Online Activity Sparks Reactions
This morning, Musk made headlines again for his activity on X. He shared a post that excused the actions of well-known 20th-century dictators, then deleted it after strong pushback from users.
The message claimed that Joseph Stalin, Adolf Hitler, and Mao Zedong were not responsible for mass deaths. Instead, it blamed public-sector workers. Musk shared the post without adding any comment. Once people began calling out the post as antisemitic and dismissive of genocide, he quickly took it down.
Historical records clearly show that Stalin’s rule resulted in millions of deaths during the 1950s, Hitler led the genocide of Jews during the Holocaust, and Mao’s leadership caused massive deaths and suffering during the Cultural Revolution in China.
This is not the first time Musk has stirred controversy online. Last year, he approved an antisemitic post by calling it “the actual truth,” which made advertisers leave the platform.
After the attempted assassination of Trump in 2023, Musk posted, and later deleted, a message that questioned why nobody had tried to harm former President Biden or Vice President Harris. Musk has often shown support for strong authoritarian-style leaders.
He’s used X to praise figures such as Javier Milei of Argentina, Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil, and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi. All three govern in places where Musk also has business ties. Recently, he publicly backed the Alternative for Germany party, a far-right group.
The Anti-Defamation League issued a response to Musk’s activity, saying that it’s very dangerous when someone with such a wide-reaching voice spreads ideas that minimize serious historical tragedies. Musk did not give any statement in response to the criticism.
Public Anger Grows Around Musk’s Influence
Democrats are planning town hall events across the United States to raise awareness about how Republicans are avoiding similar forums. Based on a recent event, it’s clear that Musk’s name will keep coming up.
One such event was held by Representative Chuck Edwards in Asheville, North Carolina, a stronghold for Democrats. My colleague Katie Glueck attended and shared what she observed.
At the meeting, a large group of liberal residents filled a college auditorium, voicing frustration with Edwards, a Republican who is now in his second term.
Throughout the evening, many in the crowd repeatedly mentioned Musk, sharing criticism of both him and the Department of Government Efficiency. This department has started making deep cuts in federal programs. Edwards defended the changes by calling them efforts to reduce wasteful spending.
One person in the crowd shouted at the congressman, accusing him of being afraid of Musk. Another asked whether Edwards would agree to reduce his own office budget.
While trying to respond to the audience, Edwards was confronted by a man named Chris Boehme, 78 years old, who was concerned about how DOGE was affecting the Department of Veterans Affairs.
“You need to defend those who served,” Boehme said while wearing a cap that read “Grumpy Old Vet.” “You’ve got a great V.A. hospital here,” he added. “It needs to have enough funding to continue helping veterans.”
