Elon Musk on Wednesday threatened former Trump impeachment witness Alexander Vindman on Wednesday, accusing the retired Army Lt. Colonel of committing “treason” and would “pay” for his role in the first impeachment of then-President Donald Trump.
Musk’s comments came in response to an interview where Vindman accused Musk of being unwittingly used by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Musk fired back on his social media platform X, calling Vindman a traitor and claiming he was “on the payroll of Ukrainian oligarchs.”
“Vindman has committed treason against the United States,” Musk posted, adding that he would “pay the appropriate penalty.”
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The threat came amid a broader political context in which former President Trump has been vocal about taking revenge on those he perceives as enemies, raising concerns about the potential erosion of democratic norms if he returns to office.
The dispute between Musk and Vindman heated up after the retired Army officer criticized Musk’s interactions with Putin in a late October MSNBC interview. During the interview, Vindman suggested that Putin has a pattern of manipulating narcissistic individuals, including Musk and Trump, to further his agenda.
“Russia has been using different levers — whether that’s corruption networks, in this case, its influencers like Donald Trump, like Elon Musk, to sow discord,” Vindman said. “Clearly, Putin has a type. He likes people who are easily manipulated to do his bidding.”
Vindman, who played a key role in Trump’s first impeachment by testifying about the president’s phone call with Ukraine’s leader, also raised alarms about Musk’s access to sensitive U.S. government information. Musk’s companies, including SpaceX and Tesla, hold multi-billion-dollar contracts with the U.S. Department of Defense and other federal agencies, which could give him top-level security clearance.
Musk’s reported regular communication with Putin, including discussions on both business and geopolitics, was first revealed in a Wall Street Journal report last month. Musk has faced growing scrutiny over his ties to Russia, especially given his influential role as a private-sector player with ties to national security.
Vindman suggested that Musk’s closeness with Putin could be contributing to the billionaire’s support for Trump. “It’s possible that some of that is seeping through,” Vindman said, referring to Musk’s reported relationship with the Russian leader. “Putin has been using the richest man in the world to do his bidding.”
This clash isn’t the first time Musk and Vindman have sparred on social media. Back in 2022, Vindman called Musk a “purveyor of hate and division” after Musk, then the owner of Twitter, posted that Vindman was “both puppet and puppeteer.”
Musk’s remarks this week have sparked further debate about his political influence and his potential role in the geopolitical sphere. While Vindman continues to be a vocal critic of Trump, warning that a second Trump presidency could pose a grave threat to American democracy, Musk’s threats to Vindman highlight the broader tensions between the tech mogul, former President Trump, and those who challenge their political agendas.
Vindman is on the payroll of Ukrainian oligarchs and has committed treason against the United States, for which he will pay the appropriate penalty
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 27, 2024
