WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump vowed to protect Elon Musk and said he would consider preemptively pardoning the world's richest man and other White House aides as Democrats prepare for investigations if they take control of the House of Representatives.
"It's talk, but if it is talk, we'll have to protect them," Trump said in a podcast interview with the New York Post when asked about the potential for House Democrats to arrest Musk and seize his assets if they gain power.
Trump said he would issue preemptive pardons to Musk, a close ally, and other potential targets of Democratic investigations if he believes it is necessary to protect them, even if they've not been formally charged with any crimes.
"That's what Biden did. He gave everybody
a pardon," Trump said. "I would if I needed to, sure. I wouldn't even think about it. I did it for J6."
The podcast interview, which aired Nov. 2, comes as Democrats are strong favorites to take control of the House in the Nov. 3 midterm elections, which would put them in control of committees that pursue investigations.
If they take back the House gavel, Democrats have signaled they could pursue potential investigations into Musk's run leading the government-slashing Department of Government Efficiency, his companies' lucrative contracts with the federal government and his potential role in cutting Ukraine's access to the satellite internet provider Starlink, which is operated by Musk's company SpaceX.
Musk, who spent nearly $290 million to help Trump in the 2024 election, has poured in a staggering $474 million to boost Republicans in the 2026 midterm election, according to the New York Times. That includes $212 million to help Texas Republican Senate nominee Ken Paxton.
Before leaving the White House in 2025 after one term, President Joe Biden issued several pardons to Trump's adversaries to shield them from potential prosecutions or investigations from the incoming Trump administration.
Those who received preemptive pardons included former Rep. Liz Cheney, Adam Schiff and other members of the House Select Committee that investigated the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol; Dr. Anthony Fauci; Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; and President Biden's son Hunter Biden and other family members.
Trump has used his presidential pardon power often during his second term, granting clemency to more than 1,700 individuals, the vast majority of whom were people charged in the Jan. 6, 2021, storming of the Capitol to try to stop Trump's election defeat. Trump has also pardoned dozens of business figures convicted of white-collar crimes.
Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump says he would issue pardons to Elon Musk, aides if necessary
