Warren, Blumenthal Investigate Whether Political Interference by Elon Musk, DOGE Caused Labor Board Decision to Drop SpaceX Charges
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Home Newsroom Press Releases April 16, 2026 Warren, Blumenthal Investigate Whether Political Interference by Elon Musk, DOGE Caused Labor Board Decision to Drop SpaceX Charges National Labor Relations Board previously charged SpaceX with unlawfully firing employees who spoke up about Elon Musk mocking sexual assault allegations Senators question whether political interference by or on behalf of Elon Musk undermined enforcement actions at NLRB Text of Letter (PDF) Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) opened a new investigation into possible political influence in the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) decision to drop charges against SpaceX for labor rights violations. Elon Musk, who was previously close allies with President Donald Trump, is SpaceX CEO. “Given [SpaceX CEO Elon] Musk’s extraordinary financial support for President Trump in the 2024 election, his substantial influence in the Trump Administration and interest in the NLRB’s work as head of [DOGE]...we seek answers to determine if the decision to drop the case may have been based on political considerations rather than the facts at hand,” wrote the senators . In 2022, allegations of sexual abuse by Elon Musk, SpaceX CEO, became public. In response, Mr. Musk mocked accusers on Twitter with a series of lewd “jokes.” Mr. Musk’s reaction reportedly alarmed some SpaceX employees, who responded with a public letter calling on the company to “[p]ublicly address” and “explicitly separate itself from” Mr. Musk’s behavior. According to the NLRB, SpaceX responded by firing eight workers who had been involved with the letter. The fired workers then turned to the NLRB for help, filing charges against SpaceX for “commit[ing] an unfair labor practice” by firing the employees while they engaged in “protected concerted activity at work.” Shortly after President Trump took office, Mr. Musk took over as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), and reportedly took a special interest in the NLRB — an agency that had repeatedly found violations against Mr. Musk’s companies over the years. DOGE reportedly visited NLRB offices and extracted huge amounts of private data from its internal systems, which set off oversight alarm bells in Congress. Earlier this year, despite there being no changes in the facts of this case or the law, the NLRB announced that it did not have jurisdiction over SpaceX and that the National Mediation Board (NMB) did. The NLRB had previously charged SpaceX with illegally firing workers critical of Mr. Musk. In doing so, the NLRB effectively killed the case, because the NMB’s governing law does not protect the same kinds of concerted activities
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