Musk Connections: Director and Treasurer of America PAC
Other Corporate Affiliations: Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America
DOGE Deployments: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
- Chris Young is reportedly a “senior advisor” at the CFPB, an agency Elon Musk has repeatedly sought to undermine and eliminate.
- According to WIRED and Bloomberg, Young was part of the initial cohort of DOGE representatives given full access to the CFPB’s data systems, including sensitive records regarding bank examinations and enforcement actions.
- Musk hired Young in August 2024 to help guide Musk’s political spending and oversee Musk’s pro-Trump political action committee, America PAC.
AS AMERICA PAC’S DIRECTOR AND TREASURER, YOUNG OVERSAW A NUMBER OF CONTROVERSIES
- In August 2024, CNBC reported that America PAC wasn’t actually registering individuals to vote, despite advertising itself as doing so and collecting sensitive personal information from users.
- North Carolina and Michigan responded by launching investigations into Musk’s PAC for potentially defrauding voters.
- Musk also advertised a number of random cash giveaways for those who signed America PAC’s petition supporting the right to free speech and the right to bear arms.
- In October 2024, Philadelphia’s district attorney sued to stop the PAC’s $1 million-a-day sweepstakes targeting swing state voters. While the lawsuit was ultimately unsuccessful, it revealed that Musk’s giveaway was anything but “random.”
- Winners were chosen in advance based on their fitness as paid spokespersons for America PAC: “Chris Young, the PAC’s treasurer, agreed he was surprised that Musk announced the prizes would be awarded ‘randomly.’ ‘It’s not the word I would have selected,’ he said. He said he knew ahead of time who the recipients would be, and that the individuals at least knew they would be called on stage – but not specifically told they would win the money.”
- According to Reuters, America PAC canvassers struggled to meet their door-knocking goals: “Three other people familiar with the outreach told Reuters that Chris Young, a Musk aide and longtime Republican operative, had recently traveled to Nevada to audit whether doorknocking tallies there had been inflated by some of the workers hired by contractors.”
PRIOR TO WORKING FOR MUSK, YOUNG WAS A SENIOR OFFICIAL AT THE PHARMACEUTICAL RESEARCH MANUFACTURES OF AMERICA
- From 2020-2024, Young served as the Deputy Vice President and Vice President of the Pharmaceutical Researcher and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), the pharmaceutical industry’s most notable trade association.
- PhRMA vigorously opposed the Biden administration’s efforts to lower drug costs and has donated substantially to conservative dark money groups like the American Action Network.
- Despite antagonistic campaign rhetoric, Young’s inclusion in DOGE might signal a rapprochement between the Trump administration and BigPharma.
YOUNG ALSO WORKED AT THE REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE
- From 2013-2017, Young worked at the Republican National Committee. Young served as the RNC’s National Field Director during the 2016 campaign cycle.
- Young’s career in Republican electoral organizing began in 2007 as a Deputy Field Director for Bobby Jindal, former governor of Louisiana.
As Elon Musk’s DOGE continues to tear through agencies with little oversight or transparency, the Revolving Door Project is publishing profiles of reported DOGE employees: who they are, where they came from, and any conflicts of interest that might make their unfettered access to the federal government dangerous to the public. Read them all here.