Listen To Story Above
In a significant visit to the Pentagon Friday morning, billionaire Elon Musk, appointed by President Donald Trump to lead government spending cuts, engaged in an extensive meeting lasting over an hour.
Initial reports from The New York Times suggesting Musk would receive classified briefings about China war plans were strongly contested by both Musk and Trump’s camp.
Arriving via motorcade, Musk proceeded directly to meet with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who shared on X that their discussion would center on enhancing innovation and production efficiency.
Posting this to piss off Democrats.
Elon arriving at Pentagon for briefings.
— Juanita Broaddrick (@atensnut) March 21, 2025
The 80-minute conference, which began just before 9 a.m., concluded on a positive note, with Musk sharing light moments with Hegseth and expressing satisfaction with the outcome.
Prior to his Pentagon visit, Musk strongly criticized the Times’ reporting, dismissing it as “pure propaganda” on X and threatening legal action against Pentagon officials allegedly leaking false information.
Through his Truth Social platform, Trump explicitly stated that China would not be part of the meeting’s agenda.
🚨🔥Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell SHREDS the NYT over Fake News about Elon Musk’s Pentagon visit:
"He's working to implement the President's agenda. This type of garbage from the NYT undermines that process and mission."
pic.twitter.com/ICkCpLktOi— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) March 21, 2025
Musk’s expanded advisory role under Trump has raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest, given his business ties to China through Tesla and his Pentagon connections via SpaceX.
The White House has addressed these concerns by confirming Musk would step aside from decisions involving his business interests while serving in his government efficiency role.
Recently, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard launched an investigation into intelligence community leaks and potential employee misconduct in internal communications.
Records obtained by the Project on Government Oversight through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit revealed that Trump’s first term saw unprecedented numbers of media leak investigations compared to the previous 15 years.
