Late one Friday night, just weeks into his second term, President Donald Trump (likely illegally) fired more than a dozen inspectors general, the independent watchdogs charged with overseeing operations at federal agencies and auditing allegations of waste, fraud, and abuse of power. At least five of those inspectors general came from agencies currently leading or that previously led investigations into Elon Musk’s businesses, many of which hold billions of dollars in government contracts.

In the 2024 election, Musk spent $288 million to help get Trump elected, joining him at rallies and using his online platform to boost his presidential campaign. Now that Trump is in office, the unelected billionaire has taken an unprecedented role in his administration, leading the newly created Department of Government Efficiency, muscling his way into federal agencies, and sowing chaos throughout the civil service.

At the same time, he and his companies are poised to benefit from Trump’s late-night purge of inspectors general, which could disrupt ongoing inquiries into SpaceX, Tesla, and Musk’s other business entanglements.