Elon Musk, head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), and Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) are calling for access to Fort Knox to examine the nation’s gold reserves. Their demands follow growing public curiosity over whether the U.S. gold supply is still intact, as the last major inspection was nearly 50 years ago.
On Monday, Musk suggested a live video walkthrough of Fort Knox, prompting Lee to reveal that his repeated attempts to visit the facility had been denied. Lee recounted being told, “You can’t come to Fort Knox,” despite his status as a U.S. Senator with access to military installations.
Musk responded by questioning the verification of the gold’s presence. “Who is confirming that gold wasn’t stolen from Fort Knox? Maybe it’s there, maybe it’s not. That gold is owned by the American public! We want to know if it’s still there,” Musk stated.
Fort Knox, home to the U.S. Bullion Depository, holds approximately 147.3 million ounces of gold—about half of the U.S. Treasury’s stored reserves. According to the U.S. Mint, visitors are strictly prohibited, and no gold has been transferred in or out of the facility for years, except for purity testing during routine audits. However, the last full audit remains unclear, and the last known public tour occurred in 2017 when then-Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin was granted access. Before that, the last major public inspection was in 1974 after rumors surfaced that the vaults had been emptied.
The renewed scrutiny follows a social media exchange where an account suggested Musk should inspect Fort Knox, noting that “the last time anyone looked was 50 years ago.” Musk assumed the facility was reviewed annually, to which Senator Rand Paul responded, “Nope. Let’s do it.” Paul has since urged Musk, in his role at DOGE, to push for a formal review of the gold reserves.
The U.S. government has yet to respond to the demands from Musk and congressional leaders.
