Elon Musk could soon face a wave of congressional scrutiny if Democrats win control of the House in the 2026 midterm elections, with lawmakers signaling they want answers about his political spending, government contracts and role in the Trump administration’s cost-cutting drive.
According to Politico, House Democrats are preparing to investigate Musk next year, focusing on whether his support for Republican candidates could help him secure billions more in federal government business.
Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas), a member of the House Oversight Committee, said Democrats should “absolutely” investigate whether Musk is using his campaign spending to “buy his way into billions of dollars more in federal government money.”
That’s a potentially explosive question for the billionaire, whose business interests intersect with the federal government in areas including space launches and technology.
Democrats also want to examine Musk’s role in the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, the initiative that drove sweeping federal workforce cuts. A spokesperson for Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), who also sits on the Oversight Committee, told *Politico* that the panel would look into Musk’s involvement.
The consequences of DOGE’s work could face scrutiny elsewhere on Capitol Hill, too.
Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), the top Democrat on the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee, said her panel would investigate “the damage that DOGE inflicted on our science agencies.”
Lofgren accused Musk of helping orchestrate “the systematic destruction of government programs and services over the last nearly two years,” adding that “the sheer number of conflicts of interest are astounding.”
The proposed investigations would put Musk’s influence over Washington under a brighter spotlight, particularly the overlap between his political spending, his companies’ interests and the federal government decisions that can affect them.
But the plans depend on Democrats winning control of the House. If they do, Musk could face questions not just about the cuts DOGE pursued, but also whether his political influence and government-related business interests created conflicts that deserve closer examination.
