Elon MuskDOGE head, Jan.-May 2025; CEO, SpaceX and Tesla
$170 billion richer from his endorsement to May 2025 (Forbes estimate); at least $10 billion in federal awards to his companies after leaving government (watchdog tally)
Musk ran the government-cutting effort while his companies faced federal investigations and sought contracts. The FAA turned to Starlink; SpaceX won a $4.16 billion Golden Dome award in June 2026. Democracy Defenders Fund counted at least $10 billion in federal awards to his companies since he left government. His falling-out with the President in June 2025 cost him an estimated $26.6 billion in a day.
Response: A transition spokesman said DOGE would comply with conflict-of-interest law; the Pentagon said a Starlink award for White House equipment followed full and open competition.
Holding office, or a family name, is not a crime. This page says only what the sources say, and carries the response where one was given. Every story we have filed that names Elon Musk: Elon Musk in the news.
In the timeline
Every entry that names Elon Musk
7 dated entries from the Grift Files timeline, oldest first, each with its source.
Trump fires 17 inspectors general in one night, without the notice the law requires
The President
Four days into the term, the White House dismissed 17 inspectors general, the independent auditors who police waste and fraud at agencies including Defense, HHS and Labor. Federal law requires 30 days' notice to Congress and a written reason; neither was given. Two of the fired watchdogs, Christi Grimm (HHS) and Robert Storch (Defense), warned on PBS that oversight of $1.7 trillion a year in Medicare and Medicaid spending, and of contracts with Elon Musk's companies, would suffer. On Sept. 24, 2025, Judge Ana Reyes found the firings violated the Inspector General Act but declined to reinstate the eight who sued.
The response: The White House said the inspectors general were terminated because of "changing priorities."
Musk runs DOGE while his companies face a stack of federal investigations
The circle
As Elon Musk led the Department of Government Efficiency, the AP catalogued the open federal matters against his companies: six NHTSA investigations into Tesla's self-driving systems, an SEC and Justice Department inquiry into whether Tesla overstated its autonomous capabilities, a Justice probe of driving-range claims, 12 unfair-labor-practice allegations at the NLRB, and an EEOC race-discrimination lawsuit, plus federal investigations of SpaceX and X. Former NHTSA safety adviser Missy Cummings predicted of the Tesla probes: "They will all be gone." Musk served as an unpaid "special government employee," which exempted him from public financial disclosure.
The response: The White House did not answer questions about how it would handle the investigations; a transition spokesman said DOGE would comply with conflict-of-interest rules. Musk had posted that he never asked Trump for favors.
FAA turns to Musk's Starlink for air-traffic network upgrades
The circle
The Federal Aviation Administration, which regulates SpaceX's rocket launches and was facing DOGE-driven staff cuts, agreed to test Starlink terminals to upgrade the networks it uses to manage U.S. airspace. The FAA already had a contract with Verizon for the same job; Musk posted that the Verizon system "is not working" and put travelers at risk. Bloomberg reported the deal could grow to 4,000 terminals. Ethics professor Richard Painter told a House hearing Musk's special-employee status was a "charade" that let him avoid disclosing his finances.
The response: The FAA said it was testing one terminal in Atlantic City and two at non-safety-critical sites in Alaska; SpaceX later said it was providing the kits free and was not taking over Verizon's contract.
Forbes: Musk $170 billion richer since endorsing Trump
$170BThe circle
Forbes estimated Elon Musk's net worth at $419 billion, about $170 billion more than on July 15, 2024, two days after he endorsed Trump. Tesla shares were 35% above their mid-July 2024 level even after a 20% slide since the inauguration; SpaceX was valued at $350 billion, nearly double; and xAI Holdings, including X, at $113 billion. Musk had spent about $290 million supporting Trump in the 2024 cycle, the most of any individual donor.
The response: Musk said in May 2025 he would scale back political spending: "I'm going to do a lot less in the future."
Trump and Musk fall out; Trump threatens to cancel Musk's contracts
$26.6BThe circle
After Musk called Trump's tax-and-spending bill a "disgusting abomination," Trump said the "easiest way" to save money was to "terminate Elon's governmental subsidies and contracts." Tesla shares fell 14.26% that day and Forbes' tracker showed Musk's fortune down about $26.6 billion, to roughly $380 billion. The threat was not carried out: a watchdog tally found Musk's companies won at least $10 billion in new federal contracts after he left government (see Oct. 30, 2026 entry).
The response: Musk posted that Trump would not have won without him; Trump said he had asked Musk to leave DOGE.
SpaceX wins $4.16 billion Golden Dome award, its largest military satellite deal, ahead of IPO
$4.16BThe circle
The Space Force awarded SpaceX $4.16 billion to build a satellite network to track aircraft and missiles for Trump's Golden Dome missile shield, days after a $2.29 billion award for the program's data backbone. Both were made under "Other Transaction Authority," which sits outside normal federal acquisition rules and which the GAO has flagged for weak oversight. The awards came weeks before SpaceX's planned stock offering. A Democracy Defenders Fund review counted at least $10 billion in federal contracts to Musk's companies since he left government in 2025, on top of about $6.3 billion awarded while he served.
The response: SpaceX did not comment. Space Force Col. Ryan Frazier said future awards would go to "a highly diversified pool of traditional and non-traditional vendors."
Tally: Musk's companies won at least $10 billion in federal awards after he left government
$10BThe circle
A Democracy Defenders Fund review found Musk's companies received at least $10 billion in federal contracts since he left DOGE in mid-2025, on top of about $6.3 billion awarded while he was a special government employee, calling the figure conservative because classified military deals are excluded. It lists the $4.2 billion and $2.3 billion Golden Dome awards, $1.6 billion for two Space Force launches under a $17 billion program, $946 million from NASA, $739 million in Commerce broadband grants, at least three sole-source Starlink contracts, an August 2026 Pentagon Starshield order with the price redacted, and a run of FCC decisions: 7,500 more Starlink satellites (January 2026), approval of SpaceX's $17 billion EchoStar spectrum purchase, international telecom authority (September 2026) and permission to buy unused spectrum without an auction (October 2026).
The response: The Pentagon said a $502,000 Starlink award for White House equipment was made after full and open competition; the report notes White House officials determined in 2025 that most Musk contracts could not be canceled after the feud.
1 records you can open and read yourself: financial disclosures, securities filings, court dockets, budget-office estimates, Treasury figures and congressional reports. Every link goes to the official copy or the original report.
Contract-by-contract list, with links to Reuters, WSJ and USAspending.gov, of at least $10 billion in federal awards to Musk companies since he left government, plus 2026 FCC decisions favoring SpaceX.
