Opinion
Elon Musk has had a target painted on his back for awhile, but ever since his acquisition of the social media platform Twitter (now reborn into X), the feds seem to have gone into overdrive. The outspoken billionaire has been steadily irritating the Democratic Party ever since purchasing Twitter, advocating for such fringe concepts as free speech and peace.
Mr. Musk’s outspoken nature and ability to weather any storm thrown his way financially have earned him quite the laundry list of investigations and probes from the federal government. The latest attack comes from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) against his once beloved Starlink satellite-based space internet.
The move to cut out Starlink from receiving promised funds to expand the internet into the most rural of locations in the United States baffled both the meme-master himself and members of the commission who issued scathing dissents. Let’s look at what the FCC had to say and how it measures up to other federal agencies’ actions.
Changing the rules
The FCC announced that it won’t award an $886 million grant to Elon Musk’s Starlink. The grant is meant to help the space company expand broadband to rural locations within the United States – something that logically should be easier and perhaps even cheaper than building physical lines.
The FCC claimed that Starlink:
“…wasn’t able to demonstrate that it could deliver the promised service.”
Never mind that Starlink is quite literally the only game in town with the capability to do just what this earmark was designed to do, as the government knows from Starlink’s use in Ukraine.
This money would’ve come from the Universal Service Fund within the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund program (RDOF).
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel claims:
“This applicant had failed to meet its burden to be entitled to nearly $900 million in universal service funds for almost a decade.”
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However, FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr wrote in his dissent:
“…the FCC did not require – and has never required – any other award winner to show that it met its service obligation years ahead of time.”
While Mr. Carr claims the FCC had decided to change the rules attached to the subsidy and only apply those rules to Starlink, Mr. Musk believes the program should be dissolved and the money returned to the taxpayer.
Before reading any further, ask yourself if you have ever heard of someone turning down a cool billion from Uncle Sam.
Arguing to return money to taxpayers isn’t one that will win many friends in The Swamp, as Mr. Musk has discovered.
Lots of ways
When Elon Musk purchased Twitter, the Biden administration was none too pleased. Mainstream media was also apoplectic with this purchase, rightly concerned that the free speech absolutist at the helm would allow counter voices on the platform, making it exponentially harder to drive the national narrative.
When asked if Mr. Musk’s purchase and the man himself should be investigated, President Joe Biden said it wouldn’t be a bad idea to “look into” Elon Musk, and when pressed about how that could be done, President Biden said:
“There’s a lot of ways.”
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Indeed, there seems to be. Let’s count the ways:
- Department of Justice (DOJ) pursuing criminal charges on alleged undisclosed personal benefits related to Tesla
- DOJ Civil Rights Division suit against SpaceX for alleged employment discrimination against foreigners
- Federal Trade Commission (FTC) demands X to turn over all internal communications related to Elon Musk
- FTC requesting X turn over a list of journalists who had access to X’s records
- Securities and Exchange Commission investigating Tesla for “forward-looking” statement regarding self-driving software
- US Fish and Wildlife Service reviewing alleged environmental damage caused by SpaceX rockets
And now the FCC. It could be possible that Elon won’t be getting a Christmas card from the White House this year.
What it’s all about
Make no mistake, the Biden administration is targeting Elon Musk by weaponizing the federal government against his companies. The remarkable piece of all of this is that Elon Musk’s endeavors are all about bettering humanity in traditionally “liberal” ways.
Tesla is an electric vehicle company on a mission to make internal combustion vehicles obsolete. SpaceX is a rocket company with a vision to take humanity to other worlds while doing so economically and responsibly by reusing rockets.
Starlink, a part of SpaceX, is meant to unite the world by providing reliable internet access to all parts of the globe, which was instrumental for Ukraine in the early days in its fight against Russia. So why the liberal hate for Elon Musk?
Because he dared to break from the party script. When he purchased Twitter and promised to remove the veil behind the deep state’s influence on the social media company, that was the end of the honeymoon between the left and Elon Musk.
Deputy Biden Campaign Manager Rob Flaherty explains the new view of X by the administration:
“We look at it as an increasingly hostile place. It was initially a place that its value was for communicating with elites and reporters and high-information people.”
Mr. Flaherty goes on to lament that now anyone and everyone has access to X, including “right-wing actors.” This fight between the Biden administration and Elon Musk is about freedom.
Freedom from censorship, freedom from groupthink, and freedom from propaganda. It just so happens Elon Musk’s other ventures have become collateral targets in this fight.
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