Did Elon Musk commit a felony?

[CitizenZero]

Found on Facebook--

"It’s entirely possible that Elon Musk just committed a felony under Wisconsin law and if convicted, not even Donald Trump could save him.

In his typical showman style, Musk took to social media and announced he would personally hand $1 million checks to two voters in Wisconsin who had already cast their ballots in the upcoming state Supreme Court election. The move was immediately flagged by legal experts and state officials as a clear violation of Wisconsin’s election bribery statute, which explicitly prohibits offering anything of value in connection with voting.

Attorney General Josh Kaul filed an emergency injunction to block the payments, arguing the offer could influence the election and erode public trust in the process. The judge declined to intervene on procedural grounds, but the legal fight is far from over.

Here’s where things get even more serious: Elon Musk is not just a private citizen anymore. He currently holds a position in the federal government as a Special Government Employee (SGE), heading up the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) under the Trump administration. As an SGE, Musk is bound by a set of federal rules designed to prevent conflicts of interest and protect the integrity of government service. Chief among them is the requirement to refrain from political activity while acting in an official capacity.

Musk’s attempt to interfere in a state election, using his massive public platform while serving in a federal role, raises significant ethical and legal questions. Even if he didn’t explicitly use federal resources, his status as a government official means his words carry the weight of authority. That alone should be disqualifying. But it could also be illegal.

The Hatch Act, along with federal ethics codes, places limits on political involvement for federal employees. While enforcement has historically been inconsistent, Musk’s high profile makes this far harder to ignore. At minimum, his actions may warrant investigation and removal from his federal post. But the more pressing matter may be what happens at the state level.

If Wisconsin prosecutors pursue charges under their own election laws and Musk is convicted, Trump cannot pardon him. Presidential pardons only apply to federal crimes. That’s the beauty of state-level accountability. In this case, only the governor of Wisconsin would have the power to pardon Musk, and given the state’s current leadership, that’s not happening.

The irony is thick: Elon Musk, the self-styled “free speech absolutist” and crusader against so-called government corruption, may have just violated state election law while holding public office and done so in a way that leaves him vulnerable to prosecution, prison, and no presidential protection.

For someone who’s built a fortune bluffing regulators, misleading investors, and spinning every scandal into a PR win, this might finally be the misstep that sticks. Because this time, he’s not just playing with stock prices or Twitter polls, he’s toying with democracy itself."