POLITICS
Tech Billionaire's Power Play: Musk Takes Over U. S. Treasury
Sun Feb 09 2025
Trump's circus act. He's busy barking about trade wars, Israel, and even tries to buy Greenland. Meanwhile, back at home, Elon Musk is busy with a more powerful plot. He does point out that the media can only focus on one thing at a time. And that is what he is exploiting.
Musk has taken a giant leap into US government finances. In late January, he and some of his tech-wizards wormed their way into the US Treasury's payment system. This system handles over a fifth of the US economy. Musk and a 25-year-old tech genius named Marko Elez, who has worked for two of Musk’s companies, were even given the power to freeze payments. For example, they could block a $367 million payment to an organization called Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service Inc.
Musk has a plan. He wants to do to the federal bureaucracy what he did to Twitter. He wants to take it apart, and control it from the inside. This is a guy who has already thrown the government into chaos.
Now, let’s forget the details for a moment. The point is that the federal spending Musk is now in control of is authorized by Congress. Usually, this process is overseen by impartial civil servants. They don’t have the power to decide whether a payment is a waste or unacceptable. Now, Musk can decide that, too. And the worst part is that he was not elected to do this.
But wait. It’s not just about the money. Musk’s moves are targeting jobs, salaries, and the status of federal employees. He’s using the same tactics he used on Twitter. Musk sent an email to millions of US government employees giving them a choice. Accept his harsh workplace changes or resign within nine days. This is a power move.
But why does this matter? Musks tactics are a new kind of power grab. It’s a mix of crazy wealth, arrogance, and tech’s belief that every problem can be solved with the right code. In short, Musk is playing a complicated and dangerous game.
People expected Trump 2. 0 would be a chaotic mess. But no one saw a tech billionaire using AI to overhaul the U. S. government in the name of “efficiency” by buying his way in. The world has been fooled while Trump danced with policy nonsense, Musk has been tightening his grip on the Treasury.
The world's eyes are on Musk's coup. He’s coming with a bag full of money and influence. So far his takeover of the Treasury is well underway.
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