

Taking the position himself would rob him of a layer of insulation from public opinion. He’ll find himself another rubber stamp, if he can find someone who’s sufficiently stupid, greedy, and/or desperate to take the job (and there always is someone). We should start a betting pool on how long that person is going to last before taking the fall for Musk.
Minor financial pain now loses more votes in the next election than physical harm and death sometime after that election, I believe is the actual calculus.