Senator Elizabeth Warren has sent a letter to SEC Chair Gary Gensler requesting the Commission investigate Elon Musk and his activities with his two companies – Twitter and Tesla. The premise is that there is a conflict of interest with Musk’s involvement in Tesla and Twitter, including allegations of “misappropriation of corporate assets” and “other negative impacts on Tesla shareholders.”
The claims by Senator Warren are broad, alleging “potential violations of securities laws.” The Senator states:
“The concerns about Mr. Musk’s actions as Tesla CEO since his purchase of Twitter and the Board’s failure to address or disclose potential risks related to them raise obvious questions about Tesla’s compliance with SEC rules and regulations. I am therefore asking the SEC to open an investigation into Tesla to ensure that the actions of Mr. Musk and the Tesla Board have not violated securities laws.”
Warren and Musk have clashed in the past, and this may have to do more with the Senator’s willingness to use her office to attack her perceived enemies. At one point in 2021, Senator Warren attacked Musk for not paying enough in taxes – even though he has paid more taxes than any individual in history. Musk ended up calling the thin-skinned Warren “Senator Karen.”
Please don’t call the manager on me, Senator Karen 🙏
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 14, 2021
Of course, the acquisition of Twitter and Musk’s willingness to tolerate free speech have caused some in the Twittersphere to bemoan Musk’s leadership of the firm, which was notably biased towards the establishment previously. It will be interesting to see if Chair Gensler concedes to Warren’s request, as the two policymakers have been closely aligned.