Elon Musk criticises Wall Street Journal article on his use of illegal drugs
In response to a Wall St Journal article, the billionaire said he hadn’t tested positive for drugs after smoking marijuana on the comedian Joe Rogan’s show.
Elon Musk reacted to a Wall Street Journal article detailing how leaders at Tesla and SpaceX are worried that his drug use could harm his companies.
He weighed in with a flurry of social-media posts in recent days on his platform X, mentioning he didn’t fail drug tests. He also criticised the Journal and referenced business successes at Tesla and SpaceX.
“Whatever I’m doing, I should obviously keep doing it!” the billionaire said in a post on X.
The Journal reported over the weekend that Musk has used LSD, cocaine, ecstasy and psychedelic mushrooms, according to people who have witnessed his drug use and others with knowledge of it.
… while simultaneously leading Tesla to be the world’s most valuable car company (Model Y is the selling vehicle on Earth) and SpaceX to be the world’s most valuable space company (~80% of all payload to orbit last year).
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 8, 2024
Whatever I’m doing, I should obviously keep doing it!
Illegal drug use would likely be a violation of federal policies that could jeopardize SpaceX’s billions of dollars in government contracts. The practice would also break company policies at SpaceX and Tesla.
Musk didn’t respond to a request for comment Monday, nor did he respond to requests before the weekend article was published.
In another post, he said he hadn’t tested positive for drugs in three years of random drug tests. He took the tests at NASA’s request after he smoked marijuana on the comedian Joe Rogan’s show in 2018.
“Not even trace quantities were found of any drugs or alcohol,” he said in the post on X Sunday.
Corporate contractors must follow standard NASA guidelines for drug tests that usually check for marijuana and cocaine and have the ability to also test for amphetamines, opiates and PCP. After Musk smoked on the Rogan show, NASA demanded written assurances that SpaceX was complying with the federal drug-free workplace law, the Journal reported.
Contractors can also lose security clearances because of drug abuse, defined as the use of illegal drugs or prescription medications “in a manner that deviates from approved medical direction.”
In his role as chief executive and founder of SpaceX, Musk has a security clearance that gives him access to classified information.
In recent years, some executives and board members at his companies have been concerned about his drug use. People close to him say his drug use is ongoing and they are worried it could cause a health crisis or damage his businesses.
In another social-media post, Musk said, “If drugs actually helped improve my net productivity over time, I would definitely take them!”
An attorney for Musk, Alex Spiro, didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Monday morning. Spiro previously told the Journal that Musk is regularly drug tested at SpaceX and has never failed a test. Spiro also said “there are other false facts” in the Journal’s story but didn’t detail them. He didn’t respond to a previous question on what type of drug tests Musk has taken.
Representatives for NASA, Tesla and SpaceX didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
In Musk’s posts, he was largely responding to other X users commenting on the Journal’s story. He was also critical of the Journal, saying, “WSJ is trash.”
TMZ underrated. WSJ is trash.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 8, 2024
A Journal spokeswoman said, “We stand by our reporting.”
Musk, 52, is known for not sleeping much. The Journal reported last year that Musk microdoses ketamine for depression and takes full doses at parties. In response to that article, Musk posted on social media that ketamine is a better way to deal with depression than antidepressants. He later said he had a prescription for ketamine.
The Wall Street Journal
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