Justice Department Scrutinizes Rep. Garcia Over Alleged Musk Threat

LONG BEACH, CA — In a letter to Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Long Beach, the Trump administration accused the congressman of making a threat against a public official for his criticism of Elon Musk during an interview with CNN.

Garcia posted the letter from acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Ed Martin on X.

The letter asks Garcia about a Feb. 12 CNN interview in which the congressman said, "What the American public wants is for us to bring actual weapons to this bar fight. This is an actual fight for democracy."

The interview took place the same day Garcia held up a photo of Musk during a congressional hearing and made a lewd comment. Martin's letter also takes issue with Garcia's comments during that hearing.

"In the last Congress, Chairwoman [Rep. Marjorie Taylor] Greene literally showed a dick pick in our oversight congressional hearing, so I thought I'd bring one as well," Garcia said at hearing.

He then displayed a picture of Musk, adding, "Now this, of course we know, is President Elon Musk."

Garcia went on to criticize Trump and Musk for their plan to cut funding for schools, special education and medical research.

His comments did not sit well with the Trump justice department.

"This sounds to some like a threat on Mr. Musk - an appointed representative of President Donald Trump who you call a 'dick' - and government staff who work for him. Their concerns led to this inquiry," Martin's letter read.

In response, Garcia took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to say he would not be scared off by the letter and, "No reasonable person would view my comments as a threat."

"We have a constitutional right to criticize the administration and the actions of Elon Musk. Trump’s Department of Justice should not work to silence Members of Congress. We will not back down," Garcia said on X.

He went on to criticize Martin.

"There is no such thing as a “letter of inquiry” in criminal investigations, @EagleEdMartin. You are literally making things up to use your letterhead to chill free speech," he wrote. "Why don’t you stop weaponizing the DOJ against Democrats while you still have your bar license."

Musk and Trump have been ramping up their federal government cost-cutting and waste-seeking project, dubbed the Department of Government Efficiency.

In a message to Musk posted on X last month, Martin wrote, "Let me assure you of this: we will pursue any and all legal action against anyone who impedes your work or threatens your people."

Martin has also reportedly launched a probe into alleged threats made by Sen. Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader in the U.S. Senate.

In a memo to prosecutors in the U.S. attorney's office titled "Operation Whirlwind," Martin said the office would prioritize investigations into threats against public officials, according to news reports.

The memo alleged, "One of the most abhorrent examples was when Senator Charles Schumer led a rally to attack U.S. Supreme Court justices. Schumer said, reading from notes in his hand: `I want to tell you, (Justice Neil) Gorsuch, I want to tell you (Justice Brett) Kavanaugh, you have released the whirlwind and you will pay the price. You won't know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions."

City News Service contributed to this report.