How very noble of Elon Musk to confess he makes errors.
On Tuesday, the person to whom President Trump has apparently ceded the presidency in change for $250 million in political contributions, carried out a bizarre Oval Office news conference the place he admitted, form of, that he’s fallible.
Musk stood dealing with reporters as Trump sat almost mute behind his desk, sidelined after a couple of opening remarks.
Musk was accompanied by X, the 4-year-old son he shares with the musician Grimes. As youngsters typically do, the little boy stole the present. However this was hardly an enthralling John-John Kennedy style display. It was totally obnoxious.
X sat on Musk’s shoulders, poked his fingers into his daddy’s ears, picked his nostril, wiped his finger on the Resolute Desk and instructed the president to “go away.”
A reporter requested Musk to clarify why he allowed the Trump administration to wrongly accuse the U.S. Company for Worldwide Growth of sending $50 million to Gaza for condoms.
“A number of the issues that I say will likely be incorrect, and must be corrected,” stated the unelected bureaucrat who likes to rail in opposition to unelected bureaucrats. “So, no one’s going to bat a thousand. I imply … you realize, we’ll make errors, however we’ll act rapidly to right any errors.”
His nonchalant response instantly delivered to thoughts the iconic scene in “Dr. Strangelove” the place the war-happy Gen. “Buck” Turgidson — performed by George C. Scott — suggests dropping a nuclear bomb on Russia.
“You’re speaking about mass homicide, Normal, not conflict!” exclaims President Merkin Muffley, performed by the good Peter Sellers.
“Mr. President,” replies Turgidson, “I’m not saying we wouldn’t get our hair mussed.”
How did the egregious lie about sending condoms to Gaza take maintain?
On Jan. 28, throughout her first official briefing, White Home Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt introduced to reporters that “there was about to be $50 million taxpayer {dollars} that went out the door to fund condoms in Gaza” earlier than Trump and Musk’s Division of Authorities Effectivity stepped in to forestall “a preposterous waste of taxpayer cash.”
Every week or so later, Trump inflated the amount to $100 million and stated the condoms have been going to Hamas, an indefensible perversion of an already indefensible lie.
Based mostly on authorities studies, CNN’s Daniel Dale reported that within the fiscal yr 2023, USAID “condom assist” totaled about $8 million globally. In keeping with the company, Dale discovered, Mozambique, which has a province known as Gaza, acquired “about $5.4 million price of non-condom contraceptives.” Regardless of Mozambique’s extraordinarily excessive HIV an infection fee — it ranks eighth on the planet — the report included no point out of an allocation for condoms.
You might name the accusation a mistake, or you may extra precisely name it a lie designed to generate outrage and distrust concerning the many life-saving international assist packages administered by USAID.
That is the DOGE method: shoot first, intention later, if in any respect.
Take the lie that Musk unfold on X about federal emergency funds getting used to deal with migrants in luxurious inns in New York Metropolis.
“The @DOGE staff simply found that FEMA despatched $59M LAST WEEK to luxurious inns in New York Metropolis to deal with unlawful migrants,” Musk posted on X. “Sending this cash violated the regulation and is in gross insubordination to the President’s govt order. That cash is supposed for American catastrophe aid and as an alternative is being spent on excessive finish inns for illegals!”
And but, the DOGE staff had found nothing of the type.
FactCheck.org, the New York Times and AP all checked out the luxury-hotel-for-migrants declare and found — shock, shock — that it was a falsehood.
No cash for catastrophe aid misallocated, no cash went to fancy inns. Federal funds administered by FEMA — not catastrophe {dollars} — have been despatched to town of New York, which spent a median of $156 an evening on inns for migrants, hardly a luxurious fee. However, FEMA unilaterally clawed again $80 million used to deal with migrants in New York Metropolis and fired four federal employees for doing their jobs.
Why let the information get in the way in which of a narrative that may whip up anger on the authorities and help for Musk’s doubtful DOGE?
Musk’s largest lie is that he and his “nerd military” of younger tech bros function with transparency.
“I absolutely anticipate to be scrutinized and get, you realize, a each day proctology examination, mainly,” stated the sophomoric billionaire who embodies my perception that nice fortunes can infantilize their homeowners. “It’s not like I believe I can get away with one thing.”
His stab at humility is likely to be reassuring if something within the precise file supported it.
Bluesky: @rabcarian.bsky.social. Threads: @rabcarian
