On Oct. 31, the U.S. Space Force’s Space Systems Command announced that of its 21 launches planned for fiscal year 2024, Elon Musk’s SpaceX would deliver 10 of them for a total of $1.23 billion. SpaceX’s launches will include the orbital delivery of GPS satellites, spy satellites and a new infrared system to provide early warning of ballistic missile launches.
Just over two weeks later, on Nov. 15, Musk responded to a post on the social media platform X arguing that Jewish communities in the United States have invited harm upon themselves by welcoming refugees from abroad. In a concise endorsement of the clumsily articulated conspiracy theory, Musk replied, “You have said the actual truth.” His post was still up as of Friday night.
The White House should pair such condemnations with action to curtail Musk’s control over vital national security infrastructure.
The poster to whom Musk was replying was offering a variation on the “great replacement” conspiracy theory, a belief held by some white supremacists that immigration to the U.S. is a nefarious plot designed to change the nation’s demographic character.
On Friday, White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said in a statement, “We condemn this abhorrent promotion of Antisemitic and racist hate in the strongest terms, which runs against our core values as Americans.” If this were a one-off incident, condemnation might be an adequate response. But Musk has a pattern of hateful statements, and the White House should pair such condemnations with action to curtail Musk’s control over vital national security infrastructure.
Under Musk’s ownership, X has welcomed the kinds of extremists once banned from Twitter for violent and hateful rhetoric. Rather than confront the hate spread on his site with content moderation, Musk has lashed out at the watchdogs that have highlighted X’s pandering to antisemites. In September, Musk blamed a decline in ad revenue on the Anti-Defamation League, which he said…
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