"To err is human, to forgive divine": Musk on bringing back DOGE staffer who was fired over racist posts

Washington DC [US], February 8 (ANI): A fresh row has erupted in the US after Elon Musk announced that he would rehire a former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) employee, Marko Elez, who had been previously fired for posting racist comments, The Hill reported.

According to The Hill, Elez resigned on Thursday (US local time) after The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) revealed several racist posts made from a now-deleted account. One post from September said, “Normalize Indian hate,” while another post reportedly read, “You could not pay me to marry outside of my ethnicity.”

In a poll on X, Elon Musk asked, “Bring back @DOGE staffer who made inappropriate statements via a now deleted pseudonym?” to which 78 per cent of people responded with a yes. 

Bring back @DOGE staffer who made inappropriate statements via a now deleted pseudonym?

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 7, 2025

Musk made his decision to rehire Elez after US Vice President JD Vance quoted Musk’s post on X. In his post, Musk wrote, “He will be brought back. To err is human, to forgive divine.”

🫡

He will be brought back.

To err is human, to forgive divine. https://t.co/TV6SJIb5P6

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 7, 2025

Vance, while expressing disagreement with some of Elez’s posts, said, “I don’t think stupid social media activity should ruin a kid’s life,” and argued for giving Elez a second chance, stating he should only be fired “if he’s a bad dude or a terrible member of the team.”

Here’s my view:

I obviously disagree with some of Elez’s posts, but I don’t think stupid social media activity should ruin a kid’s life.

We shouldn’t reward journalists who try to destroy people. Ever.

So I say bring him back.

If he’s a bad dude or a terrible member of… https://t.co/OgG6Z3hKPE

— JD Vance (@JDVance) February 7, 2025

VP Vance's comments gained attention due to his wife, Usha Vance, being of Indian origin. Usha Vance, an Indian-American lawyer, is the first Indian-American Second Lady of the United States. She is the daughter of Indian immigrants who trace their roots to Andhra Pradesh. Usha, born and brought up in the US, completed her education at prestigious institutions such as Cambridge and Yale University.

However, Vance's remarks faced criticism from Indian-American Congressman Ro Khanna, who questioned whether Elez would apologize for his post saying “Normalize Indian hate” before being rehired.

Are you going to tell him to apologize for saying "Normalize Indian hate" before this rehire? Just asking for the sake of both of our kids. https://t.co/7NY8m93hJa

— Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) February 7, 2025

In response, VP Vance defended his position, stating that it was not racist trolls on the internet who threaten his kids, but rather a culture that “denies grace to people who make mistakes.”

For the sake of both of our kids? Grow up.

Racist trolls on the internet, while offensive, don't threaten my kids. You know what does? A culture that denies grace to people who make mistakes. A culture that encourages congressmen to act like whiny children. https://t.co/xpLjhfk6Bz

— JD Vance (@JDVance) February 7, 2025

In a continuation of his remarks, VP Vance highlighted how his kids would develop views over the course of their lives where, “They will develop views that they later think are wrong or even gross. I made mistakes as a kid, and thank God I grew up in a culture that encouraged me to grow and learn and feel remorse when I screwed up and offer grace when others did.”

I cannot overstate how much I loathe this emotional blackmail pretending to be concern.

My kids, god willing, will be risk takers. They won't think constantly about whether a flippant comment or a wrong viewpoint will follow them around for the rest of their lives.

They will…

— JD Vance (@JDVance) February 7, 2025

I don't worry about my kids making mistakes, or developing views they later regret. I don't even worry that much about trolls on the internet. You know what I do worry about, Ro?

That they'll grow up to be a US Congressmen who engages in emotional blackmail over a kid's social…

— JD Vance (@JDVance) February 7, 2025

In his reply to Vice President, Congressman Khanna insisted that while grace is not being denied to people who make mistakes, but reiterated his earlier stance saying, “If you are going to rehire someone to represent you & the USA, why not insist he apologize for saying "Normalize Indian hate?"

No one is denying grace to people who make mistakes. I respect Usha (praised her publicly) & defended your family from some of the vicious attacks. But if you are going to rehire someone to represent you & the USA, why not insist he apologize for saying "Normalize Indian hate?" https://t.co/7qGS4iXWD5

— Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) February 7, 2025

Khanna has previously addressed issues of racism against people of Indian origin. In December last year, he criticized those targeting Indian-born Sriram Krishnan, who was appointed Senior Policy Advisor for Artificial Intelligence at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy by President Donald Trump. (ANI) (ANI)