Musk and Flynn Accuse Wisconsin Lutheran Groups of Illegal Federal Funding Practices

Lutheran groups in Wisconsin are defending their records of service after facing criticism on social media from Elon Musk, the tech mogul appointed by President Donald Trump to identify and cut wasteful federal spending.

Former national security advisor Michael Flynn posted on X, the social media platform Musk owns, accusing Lutheran organizations that receive federal grants of engaging in “money laundering.” Musk responded that his team at the Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE, is “rapidly shutting down these illegal payments.”

Federal grants totaling billions of dollars each year go to nonprofits to provide a range of community services that states don’t provide themselves, such as housing or food assistance. Flynn’s post included screenshots of some Lutheran groups that receive federal funds, though it’s unclear how he identified which organizations to name or how Musk determined those payments to be illegal.

The two Wisconsin groups specifically named in Flynn’s post are Wisconsin Lutheran Child and Family Services (WLCFS), a Christian mental health care provider in Germantown, and the Gundersen Lutheran Medical Foundation in La Crosse, a nonprofit health clinic that no longer has any affiliation with the Lutheran Church.

A spokesperson for Christian Family Services, which oversees WLCFS, said the group understands its government funding to still be in place. “We have been following the news with interest because we know that any funding we receive – whether from public or private sources – is a privilege and could end at any time,” the spokesperson said.

In a statement, Gundersen’s parent group, Emplify Health, said the group works with officials of all parties. “Any public funding we receive is through existing public programs, approved through the legislative process, and is used to improve access to healthcare for our patients,” the statement reads.

Other Wisconsin-based Lutheran service groups that received federal aid in recent years were not included in Flynn’s post. That includes Lutheran Social Services of Wisconsin and Upper Michigan. “I actually responded to Musk,” said Héctor Colón, that group’s president. Colón said he’s interested in Musk’s career trajectory and said curbing wasteful government spending would support communities that need government resources. Colón noted his organization has operated for 143 years and serves about 30,000 people per year, providing youth development, mental health and substance use services, housing coordination, and more.

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