Ari Melber is calling out Elon Musk for what he sees as a massive conflict of interest. During a segment on MSNBC’s The Beat, Melber took aim at Musk’s involvement with the new Department of Government Efficiency, which, in a bizarre twist, is named DOGE — the same name as the cryptocurrency Musk has long championed.
Melber doesn’t mince words, pointing out that Musk seems to be lining his pockets using his connection to President Donald Trump. He’s especially suspicious of the department’s new website, which, instead of focusing on cutting government spending, promotes the very crypto coin that Musk owns.
Imagine if a government department was named after Coca-Cola or Tesla—if the person in charge had a financial stake in those companies. Sounds like a clear conflict of interest, right? Well, Melber argues that’s exactly what’s happening here.
On the very first day of the department’s existence, Melber says, “Musk is taking taxpayer dollars to promote his own crypto business.” And that crypto business, he adds, has nothing to do with cutting government spending or improving efficiency.
It’s like Musk isn’t even trying to hide it. Melber calls it a “blatant grift”—basically, Musk’s using the department to push his personal interests.
But it gets more suspicious. The DOGE department’s mission is to cut unnecessary government spending, but instead, it seems like Musk might be using the government’s resources to support his Dogecoin obsession. The department’s official website? Barely any content—except for a logo that suspiciously resembles Dogecoin’s gold-encircled dollar sign.
This all came to light right after Trump signed an executive order to form the department. But just before that, the administration was slapped with a lawsuit from unions and watchdog groups, accusing DOGE of violating the Federal Advisory Committee Act. This act is meant to ensure transparency in government decision-making—something that Musk’s personal connections to multiple companies, including SpaceX, raise serious questions about.
What’s more, SpaceX has received billions in federal contracts, so people are concerned Musk could use his new department to push policies that benefit his own bottom line, all while the taxpayers foot the bill.
This is a guy who promised to find $2 trillion in government waste, but now it seems like he might be walking that promise back. Looks like Musk’s version of government efficiency might just be about making himself richer.
What do you think? Is this just a case of bad optics, or is Musk really taking advantage of his position to promote his crypto empire?
