Elon Musk has made the maximum allowable donation to Republican members of Congress who support impeaching federal judges who are impeding actions taken by President Trump, according to five people with knowledge of the matter.
Mr. Musk has given what had been until recently the legal maximum hard-dollar donation — $6,600 — to the campaigns of seven Republicans who have either endorsed judicial impeachments or called for some form of “action” in response to recent rulings against the Trump administration, including a weekend decision by Judge James E. Boasberg of Federal District Court in Washington.
On Saturday, Judge Boasberg ordered the administration to turn around planes carrying alleged Venezuelan gang members to El Salvador and return them to the United States. The administration did not comply with that order, prompting concerns about a constitutional showdown.
Mr. Trump subsequently said on social media that Judge Boasberg should be impeached.
Mr. Musk contributed on Wednesday to Representatives Eli Crane of Arizona, Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Andy Ogles of Tennessee, Andrew Clyde of Georgia, Derrick Van Orden of Wisconsin and Brandon Gill of Texas. He also donated to Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa, according to two of the people briefed on the matter.
Mr. Gill introduced articles of impeachment against Judge Boasberg after the judge issued a temporary order blocking Mr. Trump’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to deport the Venezuelans.
Ms. Boebert has said she supports the impeachment articles against Judge Boasberg, a stance that Mr. Musk applauded on X, his social media site.
Mr. Crane introduced articles of impeachment against Judge Paul A. Engelmayer of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, who temporarily restricted access that Mr. Musk’s government cost-cutting team had to the Treasury Department’s payment and data systems.
“We didn’t do it so Elon Musk would give us a campaign donation,” Mr. Crane said in an interview shortly after learning of Mr. Musk’s donation. “But I think it’s great that individuals like Elon are throwing support behind those of us willing to take action.”
Mr. Crane is considered by Democrats to be vulnerable in his 2026 re-election campaign.
Mr. Clyde said that he had “no prior knowledge that Elon Musk would make a campaign donation.” He added: “I am very thankful that he did.”
And Mr. Ogles, who introduced a resolution that would allow Mr. Trump to serve a third term, said that he was “honored” to have Mr. Musk’s support. “His dedication isn’t just commendable — it’s vital to our Republic’s future,” he said.
Mr. Musk did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
On Wednesday, Mr. Musk wrote on X: “For more than two centuries, there has never such extreme abuse of the legal system by activists pretending to be judges. Impeach them.”
He earlier called their decisions a “judicial coup.”
The contributions to relatively safe Republican incumbents sent a message about Mr. Musk’s willingness to help lawmakers supportive of Mr. Trump’s agenda. And they underscored how willing Mr. Musk has been to use the potential of his support to advance Mr. Trump’s goals, including ones that many Republican lawmakers had been hoping to avoid, such as impeaching a judge.
The donation to Mr. Grassley, the Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, was particularly notable. Mr. Grassley has not called for impeaching Judge Boasberg, but has condemned the deportation decision and suggested that the Senate would take action in response.
“Another day, another judge unilaterally deciding policy for the whole country,” Mr. Grassley wrote on X. “This time to benefit foreign gang members If the Supreme Court or Congress doesn’t fix, we’re headed towards a constitutional crisis. Senate Judiciary Cmte taking action.”
Mr. Musk has for weeks endorsed the notion of impeaching judges. But those calls have escalated in recent days. Mr. Trump, who has long been critical of judges he says try to curtail his authority, called for the same.
“This judge, like many of the Crooked Judges’ I am forced to appear before, should be IMPEACHED!!!” Mr. Trump wrote on his social media website Truth Social on Tuesday.
Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. issued a rare statement soon after Mr. Trump’s post, saying, “For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision.” He added, “The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose.”
Mr. Musk’s efforts on behalf of Mr. Trump are sure to intensify attempts in Congress to please the billionaire owner of SpaceX and Tesla, as well as the president, by pursuing impeachment hearings against judges they see as hostile to the administration’s agenda.
Mr. Musk, of course, could also follow up with even more money to outside groups supporting the effort that are not subject to contribution limits. He spent almost $300 million on the 2024 election, and his super PAC has pledged to focus on down-ballot races in 2025.
Mr. Musk has generally favored backing his own groups, rather than donating directly to politicians. During the 2024 general election, Mr. Musk was slow to donate to Mr. Trump’s campaign, even as he invested large amounts of money into his pro-Trump super PAC. Recently, that super PAC spent $1 million on a national ad praising Mr. Trump.
