Hi, Elon. It’s America. We want our money back. | Opinion

Dear Elon Musk,

I want my $38 billion back.

Now.

As a taxpayer in these United States of America, you would not be the world’s richest man without me. Everyday Americans such as myself funded your rise to unprecedented heights on the economic ladder. Without us, you would not be nearing trillionaire status.

Though you were born into a wealthy family in a foreign country, you needed American-style alms. Again, and again, and again, we handed you unearned money in the form of tax subsidies, government contracts, low-cost loans, and tax credits. The total was likely far higher than $38 billion, but that’s all that could be documented.

We did that even though you pretend to be a self-made man.

If you were a Black, single mom, we’d call you a welfare king. But you’re white and rich, so no one thinks to. The handouts you eagerly accepted weren’t incidental to your success. They came at critical junctures. For instance, a $465 million Energy Department Loan in 2010 kept Tesla in business.

“Tesla would not have survived without the loan,” a former high-level Tesla employee told the Washington Post. “It was a critical loan at a critical time.”

Tesla shareholders just voted to award you what would amount to roughly a trillion dollars in stock shares if the company hits certain benchmarks. That simply would not have been possible without U.S. taxpayer largesse.

You owe us.

Given boasts that you want lower government spending, I’m surprised you didn’t decide on our own to send our money back without having to be asked. It’s baffling that you were quick to accept so many welfare checks – and other special favors – but so slow to even extend a thank you to those who made your success possible.

It’s also, to be frank, a bit galling. Millions of struggling Americans had to read headlines that you might become a trillionaire while wondering if the couple hundred dollars they receive in SNAP benefits will arrive in time to feed their families. You are worth north of $400 billion but were quick to demand billions more while spending tens of millions of dollars supporting a political party that cut taxes on the wealthy by jeopardizing health care access to the needy.

Earlier this year, you led efforts to gut crucial national and international welfare programs. Those efforts have led to the deaths of an estimated 600,000 people around the world – with hundreds of thousands of others projected to also die because of what you did.

Your blind supporters describe you as a kind of Tony Stark of Marvel fame. They say you’re a genius, that you are helping build rockets and thrusting us into the future with electric cars. They will claim you’re a product of a capitalist system that encourages innovation, that we should celebrate the likes of you, want more of you.

I’ll leave that debate to others, about whether your legacy will be a net positive for humanity.

I just want my $38 billion back.

There has to be a part of you ashamed of having taken so many freebies from people who can barely afford to deal with $1,000 financial emergencies and afraid of losing their livelihoods to robots you and others are engineering to replace them.

Look, I’m just a dude from St. Stephen, S.C., a tiny town with a poverty rate close to 30 percent in a state where Waffle House workers had to go on strike because they can’t afford the $3 meal fee taken out of their checks for food they don’t even eat while working.

A Waffle House server earns maybe $30,000 a year, a sum you can misplace in your couch cushions every day and still remain the world’s richest man.

That’s why I want my $38 billion.

It won’t solve all our problems. But it can be a down payment to ensuring those workers and millions of others like them might – might – have somewhere to go when their kids get sick.

Elon, we helped you when you needed it most. It’s time to return the favor.

Sincerely,

American taxpayers with a conscience.

This story was originally published December 2, 2025 at 11:06 AM with the headline "Hi, Elon. It’s America. We want our money back. | Opinion."