Musk is exposed to participate in the US Air Force Secretary's interview, and conflicts of interest regarding SpaceX raise concerns.

According to reports, Elon Musk was involved in Donald Trump's interview of Troy Meink for the position of United States Secretary of the Air Force. This highly unusual move has raised serious concerns about potential conflicts of interest for Musk in the selection process. As the CEO of SpaceX, Musk is in charge of billions of dollars worth of U.S. national security and defense contracts, including Pentagon launch contracts, satellite systems, and Trump's proposed missile defense system called "Golden Dome." However, his involvement in personnel decisions for senior Air Force positions signifies a new level of political influence for the billionaire, which may also violate ethical standards that discourage contractors from influencing the leadership decisions of the agencies responsible for overseeing their contracts. Former White House ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush, Richard Painter, said, "I have never seen anything like this before, military contractors helping to screen people who are going to manage the Pentagon. If Musk was involved in screening Meink, Meink would need to recuse himself from any matters involving Musk's companies."