Elon Musk, the world’s wealthiest man and President-elect Donald Trump’s “first buddy,” took to his social media platform X to ominously accuse the key witness in Trump’s first impeachment of treason while calling for him to “pay the appropriate penalty.”
Musk, who has been tasked by Trump to lead an outside agency on government efficiency named after a meme, took issue on Wednesday with comments made by former National Security Council official Alexander Vindman during an appearance on MSNBC.
Vindman, who testified in 2019 that Trump pressured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to launch an investigation into then-presidential candidate Joe Biden, cited reports that Musk had been engaged in secret conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin dating back to 2022. He then expressed concerns that Musk, who has federal contracts through his SpaceX, Tesla and Starlink companies, may have shared “state secrets” with Putin.
“And [Putin’s] been using the richest man in the world to do his bidding. In some cases, that’s encouraging him probably to support Donald Trump,” Vindman told MSNBC. “That’s not speculation. We see how far in Elon has gone. And then using Twitter as a disinformation platform.”
Reacting to a clip of Vindman’s remarks, Musk tweeted: “Vindman is on the payroll of Ukrainian oligarchs and has committed treason against the United States, for which he will pay the appropriate penalty.”
Vindman in turn responded on X, tweeting: “Elon, here you go again making false and completely unfounded accusations without providing any specifics. That’s the kind of response one would expect from a conspiracy theorist. What oligarch? What treason? Let me help you out with the facts: I don’t take/have never taken money from any money from oligarchs Ukrainian or other otherwise.”
He added: “You, Elon, appear to believe you can act with impunity and are attempting to silence your critics. I’m not intimidated.”
According to U.S. Code Title 18, the penalty for treason — which is defined by the Constitution as levying war against the United States or adhering to the nation’s enemies — is death, or no fewer than five years imprisonment. Anyone convicted of treason also forfeits their right to hold public office.
Unsurprisingly, a number of political observers and journalists expressed outrage over Musk’s remarks, especially since he is so closely intertwined with the incoming administration.
“Oh nothing, just a person deeply integrated into the incoming administration’s center of power calling for the execution of one of his critics,” The Unpoulist’s senior editor Berny Belvedere noted on Bluesky.
“Lying about a private citizen and making a not-so-veiled threat that he will be executed,” The Bulwark’s executive editor Adam Keiper wrote. “And the person doing it is the richest guy in the world, a major government contractor, who is new besties with the convicted-felon president-elect. Do I have that right?”
While Musk would later clarify his threat in a follow-up tweet, claiming that Vindman “has committed treason and belongs behind bars,” he still hasn’t explained how Vindman is a traitor to the U.S. or what proof he has that the retired Army officer is on the “payroll of Ukrainian oligarchs.” The Independent has reached out to both Vindman and Musk for comment.
Republicans and conservative media, meanwhile, have long accused Vindman of holding “dual loyalty,” citing the fact that his family fled Soviet-era Ukraine when he was 3 years old. After Vindman first testified before the House impeachment inquiry about Trump’s actions towards Zelensky, Fox News hosts and GOP lawmakers said he “has an affinity for Ukraine” while suggesting he was simultaneously advancing Ukrainian interests while working in the White House.
As reported by The Intercept at the time, the “smear tactic” leaned heavily on antisemitic tropes, especially since Vindman himself is Jewish.
This also isn’t the first time that Musk has questioned the loyalties of Vindman, who has been a frequent critic of both Trump and the X owner.
“Vindman is both puppet & puppeteer. Question is who pulls his strings,” Musk wondered in 2022 after Vindman commented on Musk’s purchase of Twitter.
“Musk’s tweet — deliberately or not — evoked an antisemitic trope that Jews are puppeteers who secretly wield power over various institutions or that they are puppets of the Israeli government,” The Jerusalem Post observed at the time.
