Musk Sends Blatantly False Tweet About ‘Bioweapon Labs’ That Is Reposted More Than 30,000 Times
AP Photo/John Raoux, File
As the company’s CEO Linda Yaccarino likes to say, “It all happens on X” – including plainly false claims by X owner Elon Musk.
On Wednesday, the notorious Libs of TikTok account shared a screenshot of a continuing resolution introduced by Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) that would avert a government shutdown, set to begin on Dec. 21. The legislation would fund the government through March 14, but Musk has railed against the bill, as has President-elect Donald Trump.
The screenshot contains a small portion of the bill that reads:
SEC. 629. REGIONAL BIOCONTAINMENT RESEARCH LAB-ORATORIES.
(a) IN GENERAL—The Secretary of Health and Human Services (referred to in this section as the “Secretary”) shall make awards to establish or maintain, as applicable, not fewer than 12 regional biocontainment lab-oratories, for purposes of—
(1) conducting biomedical research to support public health and medical preparedness for, and rapid response to, biological agents, including emerging infectious diseases;
The Libs of TikTok account stated, “BREAKING: New Congressional Resolution bill includes funding for at least 12 new biolabs.”
Musk quote-tweeted the post and offered the following English-to-Elonese translation:
We’re funding bioweapon labs in this bill!
But the text he refers to says nothing at all about “bioweapons.” As Politico noted, “The provision is part of a long-sought reauthorization of the Pandemic and All Hazards Preparedness and Response Act.”
Moreover, the U.S. is a signatory of the Biological Weapons Convention. The treaty, which went into effect in 1975, prohibits states from developing, acquiring, using, or transferring bioweapons.
As of this writing, Musk’s post has gone, er, viral, and has been retweeted more than 30,000 times and features a community note pointing out the error. Some replies to and quote-tweets of Musk’s post also note that he is wrong, but it appears the bulk of users are spreading the disinformation uncritically.
Musk has inserted himself into the public discourse on government spending and was named by President-elect Donald Trump as co-chair of the “Department of Government Efficiency,” or “DOGE,” a nod to a nearly worthless meme coin Musk has promoted. The group will seemingly act as some sort of advisory commission on federal expenditures and waste.
