A Senator and a Congressman have sent letters to the Secretary of State demanding he answer questions about a scandal that probably doesn’t exist.
Politicians are pressing Secretary of State Marco Rubio to answer questions about a government contract for armored Teslas that never existed. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-NY) and Congressman Gregory Meeks (D-NY) both sent letters to Rubio last week with a detailed list of questions they want the Secretary to answer.
The letters concern a Biden-era State Department contract for armored Teslas that, if fulfilled, would have enriched the Elon Musk-owned company to the tune of $400 million. “The decision to consider purchasing Tesla vehicles for this purpose highlights the obvious conflicts of interest inherent in Mr. Musk’s dual roles as the Chief Executive Officer of Tesla, Inc. and the practical head of the Department of Government Efficiency,” Blumenthals’s letter said.
Blumenthal is a member of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the chairman of its Investigations subcommittee. His letter is dated March 3 and he’s demanding answers from Rubio by today.
Meeks is a ranking member of the House’s Committee on Foreign Affairs. He sent his letter on March 7 and is demanding his answers no later than March 14. “We write to you to request answers and documentation to respond to a series of media reports that the Department of State and Elon Musk intended to engage in unlawful procurement activities that would constitute a serious violation of federal procurement laws, and in doing so planned to unlawfully enrich Mr. Musk,” Meeks said in his letter.
The saga of the armored Teslas began last month when Drop Site News uncovered a line item in a procurement forecast that called for spending $400 million on armoring Teslas. This document is not a budget, it’s a forecast put together by State that talks about money they might spend in the future.
When D.C. decides to spend money, it can take a long time. First, it puts out a Request for Information (RFI), a signal to contractors about what it wants. Then, it looks through the RFIs and, after a lengthy decision-making process, decides whether to spend the money.
