In recent months, Elon Musk’s influence over the U.S. government has become increasingly evident, and not just through his ventures in space or electric vehicles. His control over DOGE, an entity he now exerts significant influence over, represents a profound threat to the legislative process and the very foundation of the U.S. Constitution. Specifically, it is an insidious violation of the Speech or Debate Clause—one of the most critical constitutional protections designed to ensure that Congress can operate free from external interference.
The Speech or Debate Clause, enshrined in Article I, Section 6 of the Constitution, guarantees that members of Congress are immune from prosecution and external pressure regarding their official legislative acts. Its purpose is clear: Congress must be independent in carrying out its duties, free from the sway of outside influences, whether they be the threat of lawsuits or undue political pressure. Yet, Musk’s manipulation of DOGE, a powerful entity he controls, shows how this Constitutional safeguard is being undermined.
The DOGE effect has manifested most recently in the failure of a bipartisan continuing resolution (CR) that took weeks of negotiation and compromise to assemble. Musk’s DOGE entity had a hand in disrupting the delicate balance that had been struck to avoid a government shutdown. It wasn’t just a matter of market speculation or a political endorsement; this was a direct act of interference in the legislative process, disrupting a carefully crafted agreement that had broad support across party lines. By leveraging DOGE to influence key lawmakers, Musk was able to inject chaos into an otherwise functional process—demonstrating that private wealth, when wielded in the form of such a potent entity, can have far-reaching implications for the health of the legislative branch.
This raises serious questions about the integrity of Congress’s role in the democratic process. The Framers of the Constitution established the Speech or Debate Clause to ensure that Congress could operate without fear of retribution or external influence. Yet, what we are witnessing with DOGE is the use of financial power—disguised under the guise of Musk’s business operations—to bend the legislative process to the will of one man. The result is not just political dysfunction, but the collapse of Congressional independence, a principle that has been the bedrock of American governance.
I’ve spent over a decade researching public integrity issues, particularly around figures like Senator Bob Menendez, whose manipulation of the Speech or Debate Clause to evade prosecution, in 2017, serves as a stark reminder of how these protections can be twisted. Menendez was able to use the Clause to avoid accountability for his corrupt actions. Rather than using the Clause as it was intended—to protect the independence of lawmakers from undue external influence—he weaponized it to shield himself from prosecution on serious charges. This frustration is made worse by seeing the same Constitutional provision that should be used to fight corruption, now used to protect powerful figures like Menendez, who turned it into a tool of self-preservation.
In the case of Musk and DOGE, the stakes are even higher. The Speech or Debate Clause was never meant to shield external actors like Musk, whose manipulation of the political process undermines the very foundations of legislative independence. Rather than serving as a protection for lawmakers to act freely in their official capacity, the Clause is being rendered irrelevant by Musk’s control over DOGE, which has disrupted the work of Congress for his own private benefit. Instead of being used to safeguard legislative independence, the Clause has been essentially neutralized by Musk’s influence, allowing him to control the narrative and dictate policy outcomes from the outside.
This is particularly frustrating when we consider how the Speech or Debate Clause should be functioning—protecting Congress from outside interference, not allowing external actors to subvert its authority. The Clause was never meant to serve as a tool for billionaires like Musk to manipulate Congress without accountability. Ironically, this is exactly the scenario we are witnessing now. While figures like Senator Bob Menendez have previously used the Clause to protect themselves from prosecution, Musk’s influence through DOGE is different—it’s not merely a question of shielding corrupt behavior; it’s a direct effort to bypass the legislative process itself, using wealth and influence to control Congress without being elected to do so.
Musk is not an elected official. He is a private billionaire with the power to bend Congress to his will through DOGE, fundamentally eroding the independence of the legislative branch. The Speech or Debate Clause, which was intended to shield lawmakers from such external manipulation, has been sidelined, leaving Congress vulnerable to the unchecked power of private interests. In essence, DOGE has effectively nullified the Clause, allowing one individual to dictate the terms of governance, undermining the Constitution’s protections designed to prevent exactly this kind of oligarchic control.
The growing influence of cryptocurrency and dark money in American politics has only exacerbated this situation. Musk, who has both the capital and the technological resources to dominate the conversation around DOGE, is essentially buying his way into shaping policy decisions. The public’s interest in maintaining the integrity of Congress and its ability to represent the people is at risk when individuals like Musk can wield this kind of influence without oversight or accountability. It is not just the manipulation of political processes at play here; it is the erosion of the very fabric of American democracy.
Congress must act to safeguard its independence. The Speech or Debate Clause was designed to ensure that the legislative branch could perform its duties without interference, and that Congress would represent the interests of the American people, not those of external actors with financial clout. If the Clause is to retain its power, it must not be allowed to serve as a shield for outside forces like Musk, whose manipulation of Congress undermines the integrity of our political system.
The time has come for Congress to reclaim its constitutional authority and reject the influence of DOGE before it decimates the power of the Legislature. The DOGE entity, with its ties to Musk, must not be allowed to continue destabilizing the legislative process, and Congress must reassert its independence as the body that represents the people. If we are to preserve the foundations of our democracy, we must ensure that the Constitution’s protections are not twisted for personal or financial gain.