Tesla CEO Elon Musk has responded to the New York Times report that he took Ketamine while working in the White House.
If you're unfamiliar with the drug Ketamine, it's a dissociative anesthetic that relieves pain and puts the user in a sedated state.
People also abuse it for its hallucinogenic effects.
Before it started to be used by humans, veterinarians had used it for decades as a horse tranquilizer.
During an Oval Office send-off Friday marking the end of his formal role with the Trump administration, Elon Musk lashed out when asked about a New York Times report alleging he was a frequent user of the drug ketamine during the 2024 campaign.
"The New York Times. Is that the same publication that got a Pulitzer Prize for false reporting on the Russiagate?" Musk asked while standing alongside President Trump, cutting off a question from Fox News reporter Peter Doocy about the Times. "Let's move on."
Musk's remarks came on the same day that the Times reported he used ketamine -- which can be used both recreationally and medically -- as often as once a day in 2024. Musk has told people he took ketamine so frequently that it affected his bladder, and he has also used ecstasy and magic mushrooms at times, the paper said, citing unnamed sources.
On Saturday, Musk posted on X that he is "NOT taking drugs," writing that he "tried *prescription* ketamine a few years ago" but has not "taken it since then," and saying the Times had lied.
Musk has said publicly he has a prescription for ketamine. But he told journalist Don Lemon last year he uses it infrequently, taking a "small amount once every other week" to help him get out of a "depressive mindstate." He told Lemon he doesn't feel he's abused the drug, saying, "if you use too much ketamine, you can't really get work done...and I have a lot of work."
Musk also told Lemon that at times, weeks will go by without him using ketamine.
Here's the answer from the horse's mouth, so to speak:
Here's the New York Times original report:
As Elon Musk became one of Donald J. Trump's closest allies last year, leading raucous rallies and donating about $275 million to help him win the presidency, he was also using drugs far more intensely than previously known, according to people familiar with his activities.
Mr. Musk's drug consumption went well beyond occasional use. He told people he was taking so much ketamine, a powerful anesthetic, that it was affecting his bladder, a known effect of chronic use. He took Ecstasy and psychedelic mushrooms. And he traveled with a daily medication box that held about 20 pills, including ones with the markings of the stimulant Adderall, according to a photo of the box and people who have seen it.
It is unclear whether Mr. Musk, 53, was taking drugs when he became a fixture at the White House this year and was handed the power to slash the federal bureaucracy. But he has exhibited erratic behavior, insulting cabinet members, gesturing like a Nazi and garbling his answers in a staged interview.
At the same time, Mr. Musk's family life has grown increasingly tumultuous as he has negotiated overlapping romantic relationships and private legal battles involving his growing brood of children, according to documents and interviews.
On Wednesday evening, Mr. Musk announced that he was ending his stint with the government, after lamenting how much time he had spent on politics instead of his businesses.
Mr. Musk and his lawyer did not respond to requests for comment this week about his drug use and personal life. He has previously said he was prescribed ketamine for depression, taking it about every two weeks. And he told his biographer, "I really don't like doing illegal drugs."
Now it makes sense why Elon Musk responded like he did to the New York Times reporter on Friday: