Elon Musk is the political force behind DOGE, where staffers aim to gut federal staffing and spending
Elon Musk is facing scrutiny over America PAC's $1 million giveaway for supporters of a petition against "activist judges." AFP

KEY POINTS

  • America PAC awarded Scott A. from Green Bay with $1 million Wednesday
  • Musk said the next $1 million winner will be announced "in 2 days"
  • Some X users believe the tech billionaire is doing a great job promoting "freedom from an activist judiciary"
  • Many X users called out the Tesla CEO for fueling confusion around "purchased opinions"

Tech titan Elon Musk has been under fire for supposedly "bribing people" after the America PAC he established awarded $1 million to the supporter of a petition that opposed "activist judges in Wisconsin."

According to the America PAC, it has awarded Scott A. from Green Bay for being "the first $1 Million spokesperson for signing our Petition in Opposition to Activist Judges."

Musk says next millionaire to be announced soon

In his re-post of the PAC's announcement, Musk said the next individual to be awarded $1 million "will be announced in 2 days."

The chief of President Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) said it was an "exciting" moment to be able to announce the first awardee.

Many X users commended Musk for "bringing attention to Wisconsin" and advocating for "freedom from an activist judiciary."

However, many more were not particularly pleased with the PAC's initiative, especially those who considered it to be a form of "bribe."

Is Elon Musk "bribing" Wisconsin voters?

For retired attorney Barry Phillips, Musk can "pay them [petition signatories] whatever you want to bribe them to do it," but the tech billionaire won't be able to remove a judge from the bench without House and Senate intervention.

"Paying people millions to oppose judges isn't democracy—it's propaganda," said another user, who argued further that true freedom gives respect to "independent courts" and must not be confused with "purchased opinions."

"So you're essentially bribing people to sign a petition? Is that even legal?" one user asked.

Musk has yet to respond to concerns around his supposed "bribery" as the America PAC urges Wisconsin voters to vote for Brad Schimel in the state Supreme Court race. Schimel has been endorsed by Trump.

DOGE chief's giveaway fallout

This isn't the first time Musk has been scrutinized for his "giveaways."

Late last year, the Tesla CEO was faced with a proposed class-action lawsuit for allegedly pre-determining winners in his $1 million-a-day giveaway to voters who signed his petition in support of the Constitution.

The complaint alleged that instead of having a "random" chance to win $1 million by signing the petition that promoted various causes, the winners were already decided upon and Musk allegedly benefited from the giveaway by collecting signatories' personal information and driving traffic to his social media platform.

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