In Elon Musk's latest remarks on government transparency, he suggested that any conflicts of interest involving his companies and federal contracts would be obvious to the public—who would then be responsible for calling them out.
Reporters: But if there is a conflict of interest when it comes to you yourself, for instance, you've received billions of dollars in federal contracts.. Is there any sort of accountability check and balance in place that would provide any transparency for the American people?... pic.twitter.com/r62gHvtQby
— Acyn (@Acyn) February 11, 2025
During a press conference in the Oval Office, President Donald Trump sat behind the Resolute desk as Musk fielded questions with his youngest son, X, on his shoulders. Musk, who has been awarded billions in federal contracts, insisted that "all our actions are fully public," insisting that if there were a conflict, "It's not like people are going to be shy about saying that. They'll say it immediately."
"Transparency is what builds trust...You can see everything that's going on," Musk continued, adding that it would be "totally obvious" if he were doing something to benefit one of his companies.
However, social media users weren't convinced. Critics quickly pointed out that true transparency requires more than the public simply noticing conflicts—especially when government oversight agencies have been gutted.
"Ah yes, the best way to ensure government transparency—give all the contracts to yourself and then assure everyone that any conflicts of interest will be immediately noticed... by someone... eventually," one user wrote.
Another summed it up succinctly: "tl;dr No, there's no accountability and no transparency."
Musk's comments on transparency were further undercut when he later admitted that some of his claims—such as a widely debunked accusation about U.S. aid funds sending $50 million worth of condoms to Gaza—had been incorrect.
Reporter: You said an example of fraud that you have cited was $50 million of condoms was sent to Gaza but after a fact-check apparently it was Gaza in Mozambique meant to protect them against HIV.
— Acyn (@Acyn) February 11, 2025
Musk: First of all, some of the things I say will be incorrect and should be... pic.twitter.com/7U4YswRH19
"Some of the things I say will be incorrect and should be corrected. Nobody is going to bat 1,000," he said, leading many to question how reliable his self-regulated "transparency" could truly be.
"Where are the government officials to call it out? Oh right, Elon and Trump fired them," one reply said.
Meanwhile, critics pointed out that access to key government facilities had been restricted even for members of Congress, undermining Musk's claims of openness.
"So where is this so-called 'transparency?' If there was any, there wouldn't be armed guards preventing Congress from accessing the building," one person noted, referencing the dozens of lawmakers turned away from the Department of Education building last week.
With skepticism mounting, many remain unconvinced by Musk's self-policing approach, with one user offering a blunt translation of his stance: "Trust me, Bro."
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