Elon Musk says his Department of Government Efficiency is going to work to recoup $59 million from an “illegal” payment last week from the Federal Emergency Management Administration to “luxury hotels” in New York City.
Musk and his group is allegedly finding Biden administration holdover government officials violating laws “in gross insubordination” to President Donald Trump.
“The @DOGE team just discovered that FEMA sent $59M LAST WEEK to luxury hotels in New York City to house illegal migrants,” Musk posted Monday morning on X. “Sending this money violated the law and is in gross insubordination to the president’s executive order.”
Musk’s post comes as Democrats and others are seeking to stop DOGE and Trump from cutting programs, including using lawsuits to delay audits, investigations, and peeking into “read only” Treasury Department payment systems to verify fraudulent ongoing transactions.
FEMA has been under fire for complaints of running out of money during the Biden administration for disaster relief in North Carolina and Florida, while conservatives have decried the organization under former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for funding illegal immigration flights and housing.
“That money is meant for American disaster relief and instead is being spent on high end hotels for illegals!” Musk’s post continued.
“A clawback demand will be made today to recoup those funds.”
The Stafford Act is a law passed requiring FEMA funding to be used for disaster relief, and President Donald Trump issued an executive order directing disaster relief to go directly to disaster victims like those ravaged by Hurricane Helene and not illegal migrant housing under Democrats’ sanctuary city and Biden administration border policies.
Musk’s X post came just one day after new DHS Secretary Kristi Noem told CNN’s “State of the Union,” Trump should “get rid of FEMA the way it exists today.”
