I am a huge fan of Musk, but I hate to say that I can see the SEC's side. In corporte finance, which is what the SEC is responsible for regulating, the phrase "

I am a huge fan of Musk, but I hate to say that I can see the SEC's side. In corporte finance, which is what the SEC is responsible for regulating, the phrase "funding secured" has a precise meaning, and the situation Musk described did not come close to meeting it. Musk may not have been trying to manipulate the stock price when he said funding was secured, but if he was allowed to speak in such a sloppy, misleading manner, then other CEO's would start doing too too, which would have very bad consequences. So the SEC has to come down on Musk as hard as it can, and it has great powers for doing this.