A group of Silicon Valley House Democrats on Friday demanded that the White House investigate recent interruptions to Starshield, the military version of Elon Musk's Starlink satellite internet service, in Ukraine. Their letter went to White House chief of staff Susie Wiles and was led by California Reps. Sam Liccardo, Ro Khanna and Jimmy Panetta 2.
It came a day after President Donald Trump said Musk had restored Ukraine's access. Trump would not say whether he had asked Musk to do it. "Bottom line, he put it back," Trump told reporters Thursday 1.
Ukraine says limits remain
Ukrainian officials told CNN on Friday that the restrictions remained in place. They said the limits were disrupting high-speed military drones and hurting Ukraine's ability to intercept Russian attacks 2.
Serhii Beskrestnov, a Ukrainian presidential adviser, said Starlink now works above the old speed limits at times. He said that does not mean the constraints have been fully loosened 1. Ukrainian drone pilots first noticed the problem more than a week ago, when their drones could fly at only about half their previous speeds 1.
From Channel GOPTrump says he alone decides who gets paidDonald Trump · 130 plays · captioned, with the source named
Who gave the order?
The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that Musk ordered the restrictions. It later reported they were lifted after a phone call between Trump and Musk 2. Anonymous U.S. officials told Reuters last week that the Pentagon received a message from inside the White House saying Starshield speed should be limited for Ukraine's military 1.
Trump and top officials have denied initially ordering the curbs. Musk has said Starshield systems are "owned and controlled" by the U.S. government, so any limits are set by the U.S. military and, ultimately, the president 1.
Either a private contractor independently made life-and-death national security decisions, or President Trump directed the restriction of critical military communications supporting a U.S. ally.
The lawmakers asked Wiles to name anyone who "authorized, directed, approved, or [were] consulted about the restrictions." They also asked whether the restrictions violated federal contracts and whether similar weak points exist elsewhere 2.
What happens next
The letter signals that Democrats will make the matter a top priority if they win the House in the Nov. 3 midterm election. The lawmakers wrote that the next Congress will scrutinize federal money awarded to Musk's businesses, including whether they meet their contract duties and have safeguards against "political interference, arbitrary service restrictions, and misuse of federal resources" 2.
Winning the House would give Democrats subpoena power at the committee level, which lets a committee legally demand documents and testimony. Democrats are widely expected to investigate private firms that contract with the government 2. SpaceX and the White House did not immediately respond to CNN's and CNBC's requests for comment 2. Newsweek also asked SpaceX for comment 1.
That matters because Ukraine has no real alternative to Starshield or Starlink right now. The services are built into its military systems, and Europe is only slowly developing its own designs 1. One private company's service, and the question of who can switch it off, affects a U.S. ally at war.
The Republican-run House has not announced any inquiry of its own, and the sources do not report one. Until someone answers who gave the order, voters are left with conflicting accounts from the president and the contractor.
The Record
- The Wall Street Journal reported that Musk ordered the Starshield restrictions on Ukraine 2.
- Trump said Musk had restored Ukraine's access: "Bottom line, he put it back" 1.
- Reps. Liccardo, Khanna and Panetta sent Susie Wiles a letter demanding a government-wide investigation, while Ukrainian officials said the restrictions remained 2.
Sources
- Newsweek, “Trump Says Musk Restored Starlink as Ukraine Blame Game Deepens” (2026-10-23). newsweek.com/trump-says-musk-restored-starlink-as-ukraine-bl
- CNBC, “Silicon Valley Democrats demand investigation into Starlink restrictions in Ukraine” (2026-10-23). cnbc.com/2026/10/23/starlink-ukraine-musk-trump-congress.htm
Found an error? Tell the newsroom. Corrections are noted at the top of the story.
