Let’s separate the facts from fiction on the left’s weaponization of the government as it relates to Elon Musk.
Donald Trump is not the only target of the left’s weaponization of the government to punish its opponents.
In late January 2022, Mr. Musk began buying shares in Twitter (Twitter was rebranded as X, referred to as Twitter throughout this article) with the possible intent of acquiring the company.
The acquisition was initiated on April 14, 2022 and concluded on Oct. 27, 2022.
Over the course of this period and thereafter, the left weaponized the government utilizing federal and state agencies to punish Mr. Musk for his comments they deemed objectionable and the transformation of the previously left-leaning Twitter into a beacon of free speech.
Prior to Mr. Musk’s acquisition of Twitter, the company had been a megaphone for the left.
Since Mr. Musk’s plan for Twitter to be a free speech platform was a threat to the left and their aversion to opposing viewpoints, it was clear that Mr. Musk had to be attacked.
Soon after Mr. Musk began accumulating shares in Twitter, there ensued a barrage of lawsuits and investigations of Mr. Musk, Twitter, and other holdings of Mr. Musk, prompted by the left.
On Aug. 29, 2022, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) determined that Tesla was in violation of the National Labor Relations Act with respect to its dress code limiting union insignia.
On April 25, 2023, an NLRB judge ruled that Tesla could not forbid employees from discussing pay or employment terms.
On Oct. 27, 2022, it was reported that the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) had been conducting an ongoing criminal investigation of Tesla with respect to the safety and capabilities of the company’s Autopilot advanced driver assistance system.
Also, on Oct. 27, 2022, it was reported that, independent of the DOJ, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) was conducting a similar civil investigation into Tesla and its Autopilot technology.
On the state level, in July 2022 the California Department of Motor Vehicles accused Tesla of false advertising with respect to its Autopilot and Full Self-Driving capabilities.
As reported on March 7, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) has been investigating Twitter to determine whether Twitter has adequate resources and personnel to protect the privacy of its users.
Also, the FTC has harassed Twitter with more than 350 information requests since Mr. Musk acquired the company.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“FWS”) conducted an investigation with respect to environmental damage that might have occurred after a SpaceX rocket exploded soon after liftoff on April 20, 2023.
The investigation found that seven bobwhite quail eggs and several blue land crabs had been burned. Nevertheless, the FWS continued its investigation of SpaceX and significantly delayed its next rocket launch.
Between July 2023 and Sept. 2023, various reports indicated that the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York (“SDNY”), the SEC and the DOJ were independently investigating whether Mr. Musk may have used Tesla resources for the construction of a special house, a situation that in most cases would be better left to shareholder scrutiny and not oversight by federal agencies.
Revealed within these reports was that the SDNY was investigating transactions between businesses owned by Mr. Musk.
On Aug. 24, 2023, the DOJ, ignoring national security issues, brought a lawsuit against SpaceX claiming that the company discriminated against refugees by discouraging them from applying for positions at the company and for declining to hire them.
On Sept. 28, 2023, a lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) against Tesla claiming that Black employees at its Fremont, California auto plant experienced racial harassment and that there existed ongoing racial misconduct.
The EEOC complaint followed a similar lawsuit filed on Feb. 9, 2022 by the California Civil Right Department against Tesla.
On Oct. 5, 2023, the SEC asked a San Francisco federal court to force Mr. Musk to cooperate with them with respect to their ongoing investigation into his 2022 acquisition of Twitter, focusing on the timing of the disclosure of his 5% interest in the company.
This SEC action follows their taking of Mr. Musk’s testimony on multiple occasions with respect to this investigation.
Several observations with respect to these actions are in order.
These actions are being brought by left-leaning and President Biden controlled or influenced bodies.
These actions are being brought in left-biased states or cities.
Some of these actions cover periods significantly prior to Mr. Musk’s acquisition of Twitter.
A number of these actions could have been brought at an earlier date, but were initiated after Mr. Musk’s indication of interest in Twitter, showing again the harassment intent.
These actions are blatant examples of the weaponization of the government by the left to punish Mr. Musk for disagreeing with them.
To stop the use of the government in this manner, I would propose that in matters where a determination is made that the government was clearly wrong, took punitive action, was politically motivated, and/or acted in an unreasonable fashion, a judge should have the power to require that the government pay damages to the offended party including, without limitation, legal fees.
Additionally, since the payment of damages that I suggest impacts the government, but not the individual pushing the agenda, some form of punishment should be instituted against the purveyor to discourage future unwarranted actions.
In summation, we must consider the facts and not be fooled by the fiction.
And that’s my take.
Perry Kalajian is an attorney, consultant, and analyst with extensive experience in the areas of banking, finance, and restructuring. He possesses multiple degrees in each of the areas of business and law. Mr. Kalajian has had numerous appearances on Newsmax TV.
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