CNN fact-checker flattens Elon Musk's 'big, startling claims' from the Oval Office

Matthew Chapman

Feb. 11, 2025, 11:31 p.m.

CNN's top fact checker flagged what he called "big, startling claims" uttered Tuesday by President Donald Trump and his so-called "Department of Government Efficiency" right-hand man Elon Musk.

Trump and Musk took questions from reporters in the Oval Office as they continued to defend slapdash efforts to purge the federal workforce and root out "fraud" from the government — which federal judges have already put the brakes on, and Musk is threatening to force a constitutional crisis over.

CNN's Daniel Dale, a frequent analyst of Trumpworld's false claims, had several thoughts.

"Daniel, two guys there that are not necessarily strict adherents to truth," said anchor Jake Tapper. "What stood out to you in the remarks from both President Trump and Elon Musk?"

"Three quick points, Jake," said Dale. "Number one, I'm with you. We heard a lot of big startling claims about kickbacks, massive corruption. I'm not saying none of this happened, but we have not seen the evidence for it. What we have largely seen evidence for is that there are certain contracts and certain spending at the federal government that Mr. Trump and Mr. Musk don't like. That is what has largely been canceled so far. That is what largely we're seeing from DOGE. So in terms of these claims about criminality, essentially, I think we need to wait and see."

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"Number two, on the question of transparency ... Mr. Musk is certainly tweeting a lot about their activities or posting on X, as he would say, but also in other respects he has not been transparent," Dale continued. "For example, there was an X user who posted the names of some of the people working with this DOGE team. He responded that, 'You have committed a crime.' So merely disclosing who is working with him, he's alleging, wrongly, is a crime."

The third point that Dale wanted to emphasize "was a remarkable moment when a journalist there raised this point about the so-called $50 million in condoms to Gaza."

"Musk said, look, some of what I say is wrong," said Dale. "Yes, all of us get some things wrong sometimes. But this has been not only repeated by the president but turned into $100 million in condoms for Hamas, to turn into an even more incendiary claim. Mr. Musk has not corrected it, as far as I can tell, until today."

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