Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.
Read more
One of the two staffers for Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency who was granted access to the U.S. Treasury’s sensitive payment system has quit his post after the White House was asked about his history of racist social media posts, including those supporting eugenics and repealing of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that Marko Elez, a 25-year-old programmer who was brought into government service by the world’s wealthiest man had a profile on Elon Musk’s social media site X featuring posts in which he said he supported a “eugenic immigration policy,” and made other racist statements. Eugenics supports “racial improvement” through “selective breeding” to improve the human race.
In one September post reviewed by The Journal, Elez reportedly wrote: “You could not pay me to marry outside of my ethnicity.”
Another post that same month encouraged users to “normalize Indian hate,” referring to the large number of Indian immigrants working in Silicon Valley’s technology sector.
After the White House was asked about the posts, press secretary Karoline Leavitt revealed that Elez had quit government service.
According to The Journal, archival views of his X account with the handle @nullllptr exhibited a strong dislike for Indian technology workers. In one December 2024 post, Elez promised that Indian workers in the U.S. on H1Bs visas are “going back don’t worry guys.”
Another post found by the Journal expressed disdain for both sides of Israel’s war against Hamas. Elez wrote: “I would not mind at all if Gaza and Israel were both wiped off the face of the Earth.”
DOGE has a seized a massive about of power in President Donald Trump’s second term due to the influence of Musk, who donated hundreds of millions of dollars to elect Trump in last year’s presidential election.
Reuters has reported that DOGE employees have commandeered the headquarters of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), shutting staff out of the computer system, and moving sofas onto the fifth floor so workers can sleep on site.
They have used access to OPM systems to offer federal employees a “deferred resignation” program under which they would resign from government service in exchange for spending six months on payroll with no responsibilities.
A federal judge has paused the buyout program pending a hearing on Monday.
