Krugman: It's Time to Take Control of Starlink From Musk

Paul Krugman has a blunt proposal for Washington: Strip Elon Musk of control over Starlink. In a new Substack column, the Nobel Prize-winning economist argues that if Musk really did unilaterally curtail Ukraine's satellite communications—despite some claims it was done at President Trump's urging—that amounts to a private citizen making US national security decisions and shaping the course of a war. Krugman contends that Starlink now sits in the same category as major weapons systems: essential military infrastructure that shouldn't be subject to one billionaire's whims or politics. "Slowing down Starlink was, in effect, a US intervention in a foreign conflict," Krugman writes. "It helped Russia, our long-time adversary, and hobbled Ukraine, during a very critical time in this war."

Drawing on World War II-era government seizures of key companies, Krugman notes that there's clear precedent for temporary nationalization when corporate actions threaten the national interest. Property rights, he writes, have never included the power to aid an adversary or undermine US foreign policy. With Musk openly backing far-right parties in Europe and, in Krugman's view, aligning with Vladimir Putin, he concludes that "one way or another," Starlink must be taken out of Musk's hands. "It would be totally irresponsible to leave a crucial military asset in the hands of a racist, authoritarian conspiracy theorist," he notes. Read Krugman's full argument here.