[ericalexander0]

I see two possibilities here. Either Musk is a foreign agent attempting to cripple the US government or he's a student of Blitzscaling and Jim Collins' The Map.

Incentives can help determine his motives. What could a foreign government offer Musk that his billions can't already purchase?

The spending policy at SpaceX could offer insight into motive. As I understand it, it's simply: If spending the money gets us to Mars sooner, then it's authorized.

So is this all about getting to Mars sooner? If so, then if your bottleck is government bureaucracy, then wouldn't it make sense to spend hundreds of millions on a campaign so you can seize control of the government and overhaul it in the service of getting to Mars sooner?