A federal law enforcement official proposed a criminal investigation into entrepreneur Elon Musk in February 2025, alleging potential misconduct related to his promotion of a government efficiency initiative. Special Agent Kevin Gounaud of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) put his recommendation in writing to a colleague after the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) sent an internal email asking federal employees to list five weekly accomplishments.
"The overall sustained efforts by the Deep State in the dark corners of the bureaucracy is worse than anything Trump has been accused of. At least he’s upfront and open so people can judge." Senator Chuck Grassley, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee
Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, declassified Gounaud’s internal message during a Tuesday hearing with FBI Director Kash Patel. According to the declassified email, Gounaud expressed concern over Musk’s use of his social media platform, X, to promote DOGE, a government efficiency initiative. Gounaud treated this promotion as a potential crime, drawing a direct comparison to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server for classified intelligence. He explicitly volunteered to initiate the investigative paperwork, writing, "Happy to write the case opening and find a prosecutor (or at least try)." Anticipating skepticism, Gounaud added, "And no, I’m not kidding." He did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The agent's email also suggested opening a "criminal 58 matter on the person(s) at OPM who approved the transmission of the earlier email." Gounaud claimed the OPM staffer conspired with Musk, whom he noted was reportedly a Special Government Employee (SGE). He argued that the OPM email, combined with Musk's promotion, consumed significant official time and reached thousands, if not tens of thousands, of government workers without a strict need to know. Gounaud cited two federal statutes: one prohibiting personal enrichment, suggesting X, owned by Musk, may have been monetized, and another covering blackmail, referencing Musk's post stating, "failure to respond will be taken as a resignation."
Senator Grassley's office characterized Gounaud's approach as a potential double standard. A congressional aide pointed out that the Justice Department reportedly declined to investigate Huma Abedin, who served as an SGE under Secretary Clinton while also working for the Clinton Foundation.
In his opening statement, Senator Grassley placed the declassified email within a broader historical context of alleged institutional biases. "For almost a decade now, I’ve made records public showing how a number of now discredited law enforcement and intelligence officials schemed to take out Trump and other Republicans. And here we are, in 2026, still finding records from years ago showing even more evidence of targeting," Grassley stated. He further asserted, "The overall sustained efforts by the Deep State in the dark corners of the bureaucracy is worse than anything Trump has been accused of. At least he’s upfront and open so people can judge."
Grassley underscored the importance of a 2004 law that mandates intelligence professionals produce reporting "independent of political considerations." His committee and the Trump administration have declassified numerous documents that they contend reveal senior officials operating outside this standard. These records include details concerning Crossfire Hurricane, the FBI’s extensive investigation into alleged ties between President Donald Trump and Russia.
According to reports, the newly declassified evidence suggests the Crossfire Hurricane investigation relied on raw intelligence reports that were "spun, cherry-picked and, in some cases, fabricated." The Steele dossier, an opposition research document commissioned by Democrats during the 2016 campaign, was among the materials cited. The declassified documents also reportedly describe an operation codenamed "Round River," which allegedly involved the FBI labeling more than two dozen members of Congress, journalists, and senior Trump administration officials as conduits of Russian disinformation. The documents also presented derogatory information about former President Joe Biden and Ukrainian corruption as a "Russian psyop."
Further scrutiny has been directed at the depth of the FBI’s investigation into Hillary Clinton’s private email server. Records indicate the Bureau recovered 600,000 missing emails from her server in the final days of the 2016 presidential race. An email from former FBI Director James Comey to Daniel Richman, his media liaison, released as an exhibit in the Justice Department’s 2025 case against Comey, reportedly "underscores the evidence available to the Bureau about Clinton’s apparent evasion of federal recordkeeping law, evidence that was never examined."
The declassification of Agent Gounaud’s email and Senator Grassley’s subsequent comments reignite concerns about the impartiality and accountability of federal agencies. The incident adds to ongoing discussions regarding the appropriate scope of federal investigations and the potential for political considerations to influence law enforcement actions, particularly when high-profile figures are involved. This latest revelation emphasizes the persistent demand for transparency and adherence to established legal and ethical standards within government.
