#Trump issued an #ExecutiveOrder accusing the #SEC & other agencies of politically motivated investigations under former President Joe #Biden and directing a review of cases over the past four years. The SEC’s spokesperson declined to comment on that review.
#Musk said he disclosed the stake promptly after realizing he misunderstood the #SEC disclosure rule & the SEC ultimately did not bring any charges alleging intent.
That line of inquiry, & Musk's delays added time to the investigation. He agreed to be deposed 2X in 2022 but refused to be interviewed a 3rd time,leading the SEC to ask a court to compel his additional testimony. On Oct 3, 2024 he appeared, but that year-long tug of war ensured the matter could not be concluded before the election.
#Musk’s disclosure in April 2022 sent #Twitter’s share price soaring 27% over the previous close. Because Musk's disclosure came 21 days after his purchase, the #SEC has said, he was able to buy more shares at lower prices, ultimately allowing him to save $150 million on his acquisition of Twitter.
Twitter shareholders have also sued Musk for #fraud.
investigators at the agency also examined whether they could prove intent behind his late filing, which could have led to more serious charges.
Two of the sources said Uyeda & his fellow Republican Peirce took issue with what the #SEC wanted #Musk to pay - giving up $150 million in alleged unjust enrichment plus a penalty. Nonetheless, Peirce joined with the three Democrats in voting to sue.
Under US #law, investors who accumulate a stake exceeding 5% of a company's outstanding shares must disclose that holding within 10 days.
4 of the 5 commissioners, including Republican Hester Peirce, voted yes, 3 sources said. The 5th - Republican Mark Uyeda, now acting head of the #SEC - voted no.
The week after the 4-1 vote in favor, the SEC filed a lawsuit against #Musk on Jan 14.
In the days before the vote, Uyeda pressed enforcement staff involved in the Musk case to sign pledges that the case was not driven by politics, acc/to 2 of the sources. The staff refused to sign the pledge, as it is not typical SEC practice.
Exclusive: Interim SEC chief cast sole vote against suing #Musk
Days before #Republicans took the helm of the #SEC in Jan, the agency's 5 commissioners held a closed-door vote on whether to sue #ElonMusk.
Since 2022, the agency had been investigating whether the #billionaire, a close ally of #Trump, had violated #securities laws by disclosing too late his purchase of shares of #Twitter, now known as #X, prior to acquiring the company that year.
#law #USpol #DualState
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/interim-sec-chief-cast-sole-vote-against-suing-musk-2025-03-24/
Tesla (TSLA) accounting raises red flags as report shows $1.4 billion missing
https://electrek.co/2025/03/19/tesla-tsla-accounting-raises-red-flags-as-report-shows-1-4-billion-missing/
"Many #Tesla shorts and detractors have questioned Tesla’s #accounting for years...
Today, the #FinancialTimes has released a new report pointing to a $1.4 billion gap in assets...
The report also points to other red flags...
but with #Trump and #Musk kneecapping the #SEC, repercussions are unlikely."
oh look #BradGarlinghouse, another one of the 2024 election's megadonors, had (some of the) securities fraud charges against his company #Ripple dropped (they were charged with selling unregistered securities in the form of their token #XRP - the same XRP token that Trump wants to put in the “Strategic Crypto Reserve”).
i assume the rest of the charges (the ones they were convicted of) will be dropped soon enough.
https://x.com/bgarlinghouse/status/1902345706636992720
Chinese crypto scammer #JustinSun put tens of millions of dollars in Trump's pocket weeks before the government dropped all charges against him.
https://www.jacobsilverman.com/p/the-president-took-a-75-million-bribe
The Hilarious Reason Why Elon Musk Is Panicking Over Tesla Stock Value...
https://newrepublic.com/post/192687/elon-musk-panicking-tesla-stock-value
"In a 2024 #SEC filing, #Musk was listed as holding... shares of #Tesla stock that were “pledged as collateral to secure certain personal indebtedness.”...
It’s unclear exactly how much of Musk’s shares are held in #collateral now...
If the #stock price goes low enough, the banks Musk borrowed from could force him to sell his shares"
Great interview on @CryptoCriticPod with a former SEC official about what went wrong w/crypto enforcement. My favourite quote:
> “Crypto is a machine where fraud and money laundering go in one side and campaign contributions come out the other end.”
He also makes an important point about how crypto scams functionally DDoS'ed America's regulators.
> "Having 15,000 nationally available non-compliant securities [that want to litigate every step of the way] issued [within such a short time span] is not something that’s ever happened before."
No less than 76 #Democrats just voted with Republicans to overturn the #IRS's "defi broker rule" which would have required crypto firms like #MarcAndreessen's #Uniswap to collect information on their users and in so doing discourage the use of these platforms for #moneylaundering by criminals and rogue nuclear states (#NorthKorea *loves* Uniswap) and by the very wealthy to avoid paying #taxes.
The new wave of #memecoin scams like #TrumpCoin are also all facilitated/perpetrated by these decentralized trading platforms.
If any of these people are your representative you should do what you can to make sure they are primaried because they are not representing your interests. At a minimum call them and yell at them (this works better than most people think!)
The corruption of the US government by #crypto bros is extremely bipartisan.
* Full roll call of vote: https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/202571
Trump’s FDA Cuts Are Putting Drug Development at Risk
New #SEC filings from pharmaceutical companies reveal #DonaldTrump & Elon Musk’s cost-cutting measures could slow drug #research & delay FDA approvals.
https://www.wired.com/story/trump-fda-cuts-drug-development-delays/
"Elon Musk’s so-called #Doge laid off hundreds of #FDA employees... Just over a week later, it reinstated a handful of staffers...
any disruption... cause the FDA to grind to a halt... drugs simply can’t be released"
And here we go again…
#Trump AGAIN manipulates the #market thus time by pausing the #Mexico #tariffs for a month.
Also he continues to conduct #ForeignPolicy affairs on social media.
#Trump manipulates the #market again by pausing the #Canada & #Mexico #tariffs for #autos for another month.
#law #InsiderTrading #misappropriation #SEC #SecuritiesLaw #USpol #kleptocracy #corruption
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/03/05/trump-auto-tariffs-pause-canada-mexico-00213949
And, at the same time, the "new" SEC is calling memecoins "collectibles".
Remember the $Trump or $Melania ones just before inauguration? How they were pumped and how they crashed (except for insiders)?
But, the SEC just make them seem harmless... like baseball cards or beanie babies...
Crypto Mania
https://www.didiermary.fr/hype-cryptocurrencies-beanie-babies-mania/
SEC Drops Charges Against Chinese Billionaire After He Pumps $30 Million Into Trump’s Crypto Scheme
Dictatorship. Whatever justice you thought would be available after voting for "grab 'em by the pussy," it'll cost you.
And it will be an auction. Justice is now paying and shaking hands.
____
"Justin Sun is celebrating avoiding a fraud investigation by posting handshake emojis on X."
SEC has fallen already.
How #ElonMusk Executed His #Takeover #coup of the Federal Bureaucracy #government The operation was driven with a frenetic focus by the #billionaire who channeled his resentment of #regulatory oversight into a drastic overhaul of government agencies. This is all about him destroying the agencies that were litigating with him and his companies #cars # SpaceX #crypto #transportation #SEC #DOT #courts #regulations #IRS #CFPB #FAA #executiveorders #firing #Dismantaling https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/28/us/politics/musk-federal-bureaucracy-takeover.html
…#Republicans at the #SEC have begun shifting the agency's focus. The SEC has scaled back & refocused its #crypto enforcement unit, reassigned certain staff & tightened oversight of investigations.
Regarding changes to the agency's crypto unit, Acting Chair Mark Uyeda previously said…the new unit would complement the SEC's efforts to create new #policy for the sector & "allow the SEC to deploy enforcement resources judiciously."
