Chris Van Hollen: “as we gather here on the Senate floor, over at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Elon Musk--the richest person in the…”

“as we gather here on the Senate floor, over at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Elon Musk--the richest person in the world, not elected by a single American--has gained access to the U.S. payment system--payments that go to about $2 trillion worth a year. He has gained access to the personal information of millions and millions of Americans--Social Security numbers, bank accounts, and all sorts of sensitive information that we do not want to be shared. It compromises people's privacy. That kind of scenario is playing out across the Federal Government. Elon Musk and his so-called DOGE boys are in many other Departments, and every day that we wake up, we hear about another one. One Department that we know they are in is the Department of State and, specifically, USAID. What we are witnessing here is the result of the most corrupt bargain in American history because Elon Musk spent over $280 million to elect Donald Trump, and Donald Trump has handed the keys of the U.S. Government over to Elon Musk. Damage is being done every day, and it is hurting the American people and the interests of the American people. I want to focus for now on the situation at the Agency for International Development, which has been a critical piece of our overall national security and foreign policy strategy.…”