Elon Musk was facing investigations by 11 different agencies and a criminal investigation into fraud at Tesla.
Posted by Deadline: White House, Checked
- Sources
- 6 support
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 80%
Deadline: White HouseOct 20, 2026
The Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations minority memo states that as of January 20, 2025, Musk and his companies faced at least 65 actions from 11 federal agencies, and multiple outlets report the same count. Reporting from AP and Reuters confirms a Justice Department criminal investigation into Tesla, including whether its self-driving claims constituted fraud.
What was said
… Yes, I think it's that simple, and the reason Elon buys it in effect is because he was facing a number of civil investigations, I believe, uh, by 11 different agencies, maybe 32 different investigations, and a criminal investigation into fraud at Tesla, which might have landed him in prison. In fact, he joked about it, uh, with Tucker Carlson. We include that, that clip in the film. So he saw in Trump, uh, somebody who was so transactional that if he gave him money, Trump would give him what he wanted, and the first thing he gave him, of course, …
Deadline: White House · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. The Senate PSI minority staff memo says that as of January 20, 2025, Musk and his companies were subject to at least 65 actual or potential actions by 11 different federal agencies.[3][4]
Supports. AP reports a U.S. Department of Justice criminal investigation examining whether Musk and Tesla overstated their cars' self-driving capabilities, and Reuters reports a 2022 DOJ criminal investigation into Tesla over claims its vehicles can drive themselves.[1][2]
Supports. Commondreams reports that the DOJ was examining whether Tesla's self-driving claims constitute criminal fraud, and another outlet describes the criminal investigation as putting Tesla and Musk at risk of wire and securities fraud charges.[5][6]
Context. The 11-agency figure comes from a Senate Democratic minority staff memo, and the claimed criminal investigation is described as examining whether self-driving claims were fraudulent rather than as a completed fraud case.[1][3]
Sources
6 sources: 2 fact-checkers, 1 primary, 3 not rated
- 1How nixing federal investigations and programs could help Elon Muskapnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports, context
- 2US Justice Department issues subpoenas to Tesla in ...reuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 3[PDF] Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations Minority Staff Da: April ...hsgac.senate.gov · primary source · cited for: supports, context
- 4Musk's conflicts: $2.37 billion in possible federal penalties, report sayslatimes.com · not rated · cited for: supports
- 5Exposed: Elon Musk's Real Reasons for Going Full MAGA for Trumpcommondreams.org · not rated · cited for: supports
- 6Tesla May Dodge More Than $1 Billion in Fines Over ‘Full Self-Driving' Claimsyahoo.com · not rated · cited for: supports
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