FCC under Fire for Alleged "Bad Faith" Over Secrecy of Musk-DOGE Relationship Documents
A federal appeals court is set to hear a case involving the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) handling of documents related to billionaire Elon Musk's role in the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). A group of advocates, led by journalist Nina Burleigh and attorney Arthur Belendiuk, claim that the FCC has withheld relevant information "in bad faith" over concerns about potential conflicts of interest between Musk, as a public face for DOGE, and his control of SpaceX, an FCC-regulated entity.
The group filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with the FCC last year, seeking documents on Carr's visits to facilities affiliated with SpaceX or Tesla. Despite eight public posts by FCC Chair Brendan Carr showing him visiting these facilities within the requested timeframe, the agency failed to provide documents regarding office planning and travel itineraries.
Burleigh and Belendiuk argue that this lack of transparency is critical, given Musk's involvement in both DOGE and SpaceX. They claim that if the FCC had considered the conflict of interest, it would have shed light on whether Carr's actions raised any issues related to his relationship with the Republican Party or as head of DOGE.
The group has previously produced sanitized email threads showing Carr responding to press inquiries about DOGE employees listed in The Verge staff directory. However, the FCC refused to produce text messages that may be relevant to their request, citing a lack of documentation.
Furthermore, Burleigh and Belendiuk have pointed out discrepancies in Tarak Makecha's onboarding at the FCC, including his financial disclosure form indicating he held stock in Tesla, Disney, and telecommunications companies. The agency has failed to provide documents detailing security clearances or ethics agreements for Makecha regarding these matters.
The advocates are now seeking a court order that would allow them to conduct discovery and depositions in order to uncover more information about the relationship between Musk's role as DOGE head and his control of SpaceX, as well as Carr's potential conflicts of interest.
A federal appeals court is set to hear a case involving the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) handling of documents related to billionaire Elon Musk's role in the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). A group of advocates, led by journalist Nina Burleigh and attorney Arthur Belendiuk, claim that the FCC has withheld relevant information "in bad faith" over concerns about potential conflicts of interest between Musk, as a public face for DOGE, and his control of SpaceX, an FCC-regulated entity.
The group filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with the FCC last year, seeking documents on Carr's visits to facilities affiliated with SpaceX or Tesla. Despite eight public posts by FCC Chair Brendan Carr showing him visiting these facilities within the requested timeframe, the agency failed to provide documents regarding office planning and travel itineraries.
Burleigh and Belendiuk argue that this lack of transparency is critical, given Musk's involvement in both DOGE and SpaceX. They claim that if the FCC had considered the conflict of interest, it would have shed light on whether Carr's actions raised any issues related to his relationship with the Republican Party or as head of DOGE.
The group has previously produced sanitized email threads showing Carr responding to press inquiries about DOGE employees listed in The Verge staff directory. However, the FCC refused to produce text messages that may be relevant to their request, citing a lack of documentation.
Furthermore, Burleigh and Belendiuk have pointed out discrepancies in Tarak Makecha's onboarding at the FCC, including his financial disclosure form indicating he held stock in Tesla, Disney, and telecommunications companies. The agency has failed to provide documents detailing security clearances or ethics agreements for Makecha regarding these matters.
The advocates are now seeking a court order that would allow them to conduct discovery and depositions in order to uncover more information about the relationship between Musk's role as DOGE head and his control of SpaceX, as well as Carr's potential conflicts of interest.
the FCC is being super shady about this whole thing... i mean, they're basically saying "oh nope, we don't wanna share our docs" 
. like, isn't that how FOIA works? 
all they gotta do is release what's public and leave the rest alone 
. but noooo, they're trying to hide something. and now these advocates are getting all up in arms about it 
, saying it's bad faith and stuff... i get where they're coming from 
, the FCC does seem a bit sketchy here. maybe just some good old-fashioned transparency would solve this? 
this whole thing is kinda weird - the FCC is like super secretive about Elon Musk's connection to DOGE and it's sparking a lot of drama... I mean, shouldn't they be transparent about how their chair is interacting with folks who might have a conflict of interest? 
. And what's up with not providing security clearances for Tarak Makecha? That just seems super suspicious 
. And now they're dodgin' FOIA requests left and right? That don't sit well with me. I'm startin' to think there's more to this story than meets the eye 
. The FCC is supposed to be transparent, not secretive...
like cant believe carrs just being super secretive about musk doge stuff. i mean like how can he not disclose all the emails & text messages related to doge & spacex? its def fishy 