California congressman accused of threatening Elon Musk
Elon Musk listens as President Donald Trump speaks with reporters in the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (Photo/Alex Brandon)
LONG BEACH – Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Long Beach) has been accused by the Trump administration of a threat against a public official for his apparent criticism of Elon Musk in a televised interview, according to a letter posted online, and is pushing back Friday.
The letter from Ed Martin, the acting US attorney for the District of Columbia, asks Garcia about an interview on CNN on Feb. 12 in which the congressman said, “What the American public wants is for us to bring actual weapons to this bar fight. This is an actual fight for democracy.”
The interview took place the same day Garcia held up a photo of Musk during a hearing and made an apparently lewd comment.
Martin wrote in the letter, which Garcia posted on social media, that the comment sounds “like a threat” to Musk — a close ally of President Donald Trump — and his staff. “Their concerns have led to this inquiry. …We take threats against public officials very seriously.”
Garcia said he would not be scared off by the letter.
“No reasonable person would view my comments as a threat,” he wrote on social media. “We are living in a dangerous time, and elected members of Congress must have the right to forcefully oppose the Trump Administration.”
Trump’s Department of Justice is targeting me for criticizing Elon Musk. Members of Congress have a right to speak freely and oppose the Administration – especially as they try to destroy our agencies and federal institutions. We won’t back down. pic.twitter.com/y3ykpOxzyE
— Congressman Robert Garcia (@RepRobertGarcia) February 20, 2025
Musk and Trump have been ramping up their cost-cutting and waste-seeking agency, the Department of Government Efficiency, which is working to make cuts throughout the federal government.
In a message to Musk posted on X last month, Martin wrote, “Let me assure you of this: we will pursue any and all legal action against anyone who impedes your work or threatens your people.”
Martin has also reportedly launched a probe into alleged threats made by Sen. Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader in the US Senate.
In a memo to prosecutors in the US attorney’s office titled “Operation Whirlwind,” Martin said the office would prioritize investigations into threats against public officials, according to news reports.
The memo alleged, “One of the most abhorrent examples was when Senator Charles Schumer led a rally to attack US Supreme Court justices.
Schumer said, reading from notes in his hand: `I want to tell you, (Justice Neil) Gorsuch, I want to tell you (Justice Brett) Kavanaugh, you have released the whirlwind and you will pay the price. You won’t know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions.”’ (CNS)
