Online reports that Elon Musk participated in President Donald Trump's interview with Meink, the nominee for Secretary of the Air Force, according to disclosures to Congress by Troy Meink-a highly unusual move that has raised concerns about Musk's role in the selection process. As CEO of SpaceX, Musk holds billions of dollars in U.S. national security and defense contracts. These include the Pentagon's launch contract, satellite systems, and Trump's proposed missile defense system called the "Golden Dome." But his involvement in personnel decisions in senior positions in the Air Force marks a new level for the billionaire in political influence-which may also violate ethical norms that discourage contractors from influencing leadership decisions of the agencies that oversee their contracts. Richard Painter, the former top White House ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush, said: "I have never seen anything like this before where military contractors help screen the people who run the Pentagon. If Musk was involved in the screening of Meinke, Meinke would need to recuse himself from anything involving Musk's company."