US Officials Criticize EU Fine Against Elon Musk and X Under the Digital Services Act

Senior Trump administration officials, including US Vice President J.D. Vance, have criticized the European Union’s fine against Elon Musk, one of President Trump’s biggest donors and a major donor to Republican candidates ahead of the midterm elections.

US Justice Department challenges EU enforcement

The US Justice Department said the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) unfairly “extended legal oversight to Mr. Musk himself as an individual and involved completely separate and unrelated U.S. entities owned by Mr. Musk.”

The department also alleged that the European Commission improperly calculated the penalty using the total global annual revenue of other companies controlled by Musk, rather than revenue generated by X within the EU’s jurisdiction.

X, xAI and SpaceX ownership changes

In March 2025, X merged with Musk’s artificial intelligence company, xAI. xAI was later acquired by Musk’s rocket company, SpaceX, ahead of its initial public offering in June of this year.

SpaceX declined to comment.

EU investigates X over Grok and other potential violations

Separately, the EU is investigating X for additional potential violations of the DSA. The investigation includes whether X assessed and mitigated the risks of integrating its Grok artificial intelligence chatbot into the platform for users in the EU.

Apple also appeals €500 million EU penalty

Apple is separately appealing a €500 million fine imposed under EU digital market laws for alleged anti-competitive behavior in its App Store.

President Trump criticized the penalties, calling them “foreign extortion” and “a form of taxation.” During his first administration, Trump unsuccessfully attempted to influence Apple’s challenge to its €13 billion Irish tax bill.

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