Billionaire government efficiency chief Elon Musk has repeatedly spread baseless or false claims about the gutted U.S. Agency for International Development on X, including an unsupported claim the agency was a form of “money laundering” and that it paid celebrities millions to visit Ukraine.

Many false and misleading claims about USAID spending practices have spread quickly on X, propped up by billionaires including Musk and Bill Ackman.

https://archive.ph/InvFn

https://www.forbes.com/sites/conormurray/2025/02/10/elon-musk-pushes-false-claim-ex-usaid-chief-earned-23-million-the-biggest-doge-hoaxes-spread-on-x/

 

9 minutes ago, placeholder said:

Billionaire government efficiency chief Elon Musk has repeatedly spread baseless or false claims about the gutted U.S. Agency for International Development on X, including an unsupported claim the agency was a form of “money laundering” and that it paid celebrities millions to visit Ukraine.

Many false and misleading claims about USAID spending practices have spread quickly on X, propped up by billionaires including Musk and Bill Ackman.

https://archive.ph/InvFn

https://www.forbes.com/sites/conormurray/2025/02/10/elon-musk-pushes-false-claim-ex-usaid-chief-earned-23-million-the-biggest-doge-hoaxes-spread-on-x/

 

Musk never stops lying about USAID.

We already knew that, illidean reposted all his lying tweets! 🙂

Pretty good article, read it mostly because I respect Forbes as a credible source of information.

 

No doubt that Musk and Co. are exaggerating some things to justify their efforts.  

 

That said, and at the risk of being branded a "Trumpist" or a "MAGA", the author really tapdances on some of his points.

 

One example:  "Did Usaid Spend $6 Million On ‘tourism In Egypt?’
No. USAID announced a $6 million payment to Egypt to “increase educational opportunities and strengthen the livelihoods of the people of North Sinai”—not to fund tourism, as the White House claimed."

 

Might not say "tourism" exactly but if tourism "increase educational opportunities and strengthens the livelihoods..." then it's six of one and half dozen of another.

 

Some good points in the article, some not so good points.  Like most articles.

 

(I did note that the author was the magazine's "news reporter covering entertainment trends".  Odd topic for him, though Trump is so "everywhere" that perhaps he's considered entertainment now.)

 

 

 

 

1 minute ago, TheAppletons said:

Pretty good article, read it mostly because I respect Forbes as a credible source of information.

 

No doubt that Musk and Co. are exaggerating some things to justify their efforts.  

 

That said, and at the risk of being branded a "Trumpist" or a "MAGA", the author really tapdances on some of his points.

 

One example:  "Did Usaid Spend $6 Million On ‘tourism In Egypt?’
No. USAID announced a $6 million payment to Egypt to “increase educational opportunities and strengthen the livelihoods of the people of North Sinai”—not to fund tourism, as the White House claimed."

 

Might not say "tourism" exactly but if tourism "increase educational opportunities and strengthens the livelihoods..." then it's six of one and half dozen of another.

 

Some good points in the article, some not so good points.  Like most articles.

 

(I did note that the author was the magazine's "news reporter covering entertainment trends".  Odd topic for him, though Trump is so "everywhere" that perhaps he's considered entertainment now.)

 

 

 

 

No, Musk isn't just exaggerating some things. He's lying and promoting lies.

4 minutes ago, placeholder said:

No, Musk isn't just exaggerating some things. He's lying and promoting lies.

 

  Okay, have it your way.  

 

  (Why I don't comment in these political threads much.  I don't care either way but that has no place here, apparently.)

 

  Thanks for posting the article though.

29 minutes ago, placeholder said:

Billionaire government efficiency chief Elon Musk has repeatedly spread baseless or false claims about the gutted U.S. Agency for International Development on X, including an unsupported claim the agency was a form of “money laundering” and that it paid celebrities millions to visit Ukraine.

Many false and misleading claims about USAID spending practices have spread quickly on X, propped up by billionaires including Musk and Bill Ackman.

https://archive.ph/InvFn

https://www.forbes.com/sites/conormurray/2025/02/10/elon-musk-pushes-false-claim-ex-usaid-chief-earned-23-million-the-biggest-doge-hoaxes-spread-on-x/

 

Opening that link to the Forbes article really is an eye-opener and I would have never believed that trump, musk and co would lie so blatantly, although I shouldn't really be surprised because they have done so for years, but these claims are just outright scandalous and outrageous.

 

Thanks for bringing that to the attention of the non-Maga folk, who only want to see the truth and facts, whereas the MAGA nuts only want lies and untruths, preferably wrapped into one article, helped by posters like illisdean continually spreading lies/misinformation/disinformation in just about every post, and I do feel sorry for him because he seems to have lost the plot with his hatred.

 

Thanks for this link @placeholder.
 

37 minutes ago, placeholder said:

Billionaire government efficiency chief Elon Musk has repeatedly spread baseless or false claims about the gutted U.S. Agency for International Development on X, including an unsupported claim the agency was a form of “money laundering” and that it paid celebrities millions to visit Ukraine.

Many false and misleading claims about USAID spending practices have spread quickly on X, propped up by billionaires including Musk and Bill Ackman.

https://archive.ph/InvFn

https://www.forbes.com/sites/conormurray/2025/02/10/elon-musk-pushes-false-claim-ex-usaid-chief-earned-23-million-the-biggest-doge-hoaxes-spread-on-x/

 

False claims, lies, are easily spread and I worry AI will make them harder to distinguish in the future. Imagine a video of Biden admitting he killed his son with a gunshot to the head.

43 minutes ago, TheAppletons said:

 

  Okay, have it your way.  

 

  (Why I don't comment in these political threads much.  I don't care either way but that has no place here, apparently.)

 

  Thanks for posting the article though.

It's not a matter of having it my way. He made and passed along also claims that were false. It's not about exaggerating numbers, it's about qualitative falsehoods.

Make me seriously wonder how many of the most vehement AN critics of the efforts to rein in the rampant waste, fraud, and abuse by the permanent Washington DC bureaucracy weren't on the USAID payroll. Now they are mad because their paychecks stopped?  Maybe.

 

Just now, connda said:

Make me seriously wonder how many of the most vehement AN critics of the efforts to rein in the rampant waster, fraud, and abuse by the permanent Washington DC bureaucracy weren't on the USAID payroll. Now they are mad because their paychecks stopped.

 

If you believe that the man making fraudulent claims is exposing fraud, then you are a sucker.

1 hour ago, placeholder said:

Billionaire government efficiency chief Elon Musk has repeatedly spread baseless or false claims about the gutted U.S. Agency for International Development on X, including an unsupported claim the agency was a form of “money laundering” and that it paid celebrities millions to visit Ukraine.

Many false and misleading claims about USAID spending practices have spread quickly on X, propped up by billionaires including Musk and Bill Ackman.

https://archive.ph/InvFn

https://www.forbes.com/sites/conormurray/2025/02/10/elon-musk-pushes-false-claim-ex-usaid-chief-earned-23-million-the-biggest-doge-hoaxes-spread-on-x/

 

Do you spend each day reading this stuff?

2 minutes ago, Harrisfan said:

Do you spend each day reading this stuff?

Do you think that focusing on me instead of on the information provided proves anything except that you are impervious to evidence you find disagreeable?

6 minutes ago, Harrisfan said:

Do you spend each day reading this stuff?

He reads nothing. He’s a leftist, he just posts links to headlines.

The US is undergoing a silent coup de tat, where the levers of power and democracy are being dismantled and replaced by a one party State. 
 

When Trump said vote for me and you won’t ever have to vote again he was serious. Soon the US will operate like Russia. 

The left wing socialists are crying in their beer as Musk tries to clean up the mess that old sleepy Joe produced. Musk is a smart man and the socialists realize that he will put a stop to their wanton mass waste of the good taxpayers money. The socialists are in a tizzy wondering who to hate more, Trump or Musk.

Just now, mogandave said:

He reads nothing. He’s a leftist, he just posts links to headlines.

If you are not in the MAGA cult you are a “leftist”. 

10 minutes ago, placeholder said:

If you believe that the man making fraudulent claims is exposing fraud, then you are a sucker.

That’s it in a nutshell. All these MAGA loons believe they are on the “good” side when they are really just morons who’ve been gaslighted into supporting a criminal cult. 

3 minutes ago, mogandave said:

He reads nothing. He’s a leftist, he just posts links to headlines.

Makes sense. Intelligent people read books.

1 minute ago, mogandave said:

He reads nothing. He’s a leftist, he just posts links to headlines.

Had you read the article, you would see, for example, that my reply to the Appletons accurately reflects what was in the article. But you can post like you do, precisely because you don't read past the headlines. Thanks for providing yet another right wing source of irony.

3 minutes ago, AlexRich said:

If you are not in the MAGA cult you are a “leftist”. 

There is no maga cult. You are in the liberal cult. Lie, deflect, dodge.

5 minutes ago, Keep Right said:

The left wing socialists are crying in their beer as Musk tries to clean up the mess that old sleepy Joe produced. Musk is a smart man and the socialists realize that he will put a stop to their wanton mass waste of the good taxpayers money. The socialists are in a tizzy wondering who to hate more, Trump or Musk.

I think it's sad. 60 to 80yo liberals acting like teenage girls. Never grew up and became a man.

1 minute ago, Harrisfan said:

There is no maga cult. You are in the liberal cult. Lie, deflect, dodge.

Instead of addressing the information in an article about Musk's lies, you engage in irrelevant comments. That would be called deflecting and dodging. You might want to look up a psychological phenomenon called projection. Once again, thanks for the irony.

1 minute ago, Harrisfan said:

There is no maga cult. You are in the liberal cult. Lie, deflect, dodge.

That’s exactly what a cult member would say? You’re gone, lost down a rabbit hole of lies and propaganda … one of Trump’s useful idiots.

2 minutes ago, AlexRich said:

If you are not in the MAGA cult you are a “leftist”. 

I was commenting on one poster in particular, not everyone that voted against Trump.

 

A lot of people that voted against Trump are not leftists, and a lot of people that voted for Trump are not MAGA. 

 

But because you came to that silly conclusion, I’m betting you’re a leftist as well.

3 minutes ago, AlexRich said:

That’s exactly what a cult member would say? You’re gone, lost down a rabbit hole of lies and propaganda … one of Trump’s useful idiots.

Nothing worse than an old immature liberal. Still acting like a teenager who lost something. Your team lost. Time to accept it and get a life.

I don't believe anything lefties are saying after they literally spent all their campaign money on celebrities.

13 minutes ago, AlexRich said:

The US is undergoing a silent coup de tat, where the levers of power and democracy are being dismantled and replaced by a one party State.

 

You must be using that alternative definition of "coup de tat", where the elected person does what he has been elected to do.  🤦‍♂️

1 minute ago, Celsius said:

I don't believe anything lefties are saying after they literally spent all their campaign money on celebrities.

$1bn 

2 minutes ago, mogandave said:

I was commenting on one poster in particular, not everyone that voted against Trump.

 

A lot of people that voted against Trump are not leftists, and a lot of people that voted for Trump are not MAGA. 

 

But because you came to that silly conclusion, I’m betting you’re a leftist as well.

Stay away from the Casino.