DOGE's Elon Musk to visit Fort Knox to ensure gold hasn't been 'stolen'

(NewsNation) — President Donald Trump said during his code at the CPAC conference that Elon Musk volition beryllium reviewing Fort Knox, the depository successful Kentucky for American golden reserves, to guarantee that golden inactive exists there.

"We're going to unfastened up the doors. We're going to inspect Fort Knox," Trump said. "I don't privation to unfastened it and the cupboards are bare."

According to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, an audit is done connected Fort Knox each year, and "all the golden is contiguous and accounted for."

What is the Fort Knox depository?

The United States Bullion Depository, located astatine Fort Knox successful Kentucky, has stored reserves for the United States since 1937. It is besides utilized arsenic the Army's quality resources bid halfway and is wherever the largest yearly grooming for the Army is held each summer.

Fort Knox is astir 35 miles southbound of Louisville, Kentucky, and is implicit 100,000 acres. It was created during World War I arsenic Camp Knox, an artillery scope named aft Major General Henry Knox, according to the Kentucky Historical Society Foundation.

During World War II, the Army created the Armored Force there, ordering thousands of soldiers to spell to Fort Knox and beryllium introduced to the tank. It was known arsenic the "Home of Cavalry and Armor" for astir 80 years, according to The Associated Press.

Then, successful 2005, the Armor Center and School was moved to Georgia, and the Human Resource Command Center of Excellence was created successful Fort Knox.

How overmuch golden is astatine Fort Knox?

According to the United States Mint, the magnitude of golden holdings astatine Fort Knox presently adds up to 147.3 cardinal ounces, with fractional of the Treasury's stored golden being kept there. The lone golden that has ever been removed was highly tiny to trial the purity during the regularly scheduled audits.

Those samples are the lone golden from Fort Knox that has been transferred to oregon from the depository for years. The gold's publication worth is presently astatine $42.22 per ounce. The depository has astir $436 cardinal worthy of gold, according to Forbes. However, the authorities says the worth of golden astatine Fort Knox is lone $6 billion.

Is Fort Knox secure?

The depository is seen arsenic highly secure, with nary 1 idiosyncratic having cognition of each azygous process to unfastened the vault, according to The Associated Press.

The lone things that are publically known see erstwhile the installation was built and however it was made. In 1936, the depository was made with 16,000 cubic feet of granite, 4,200 cubic yards of concrete, 750 tons of reinforcing alloy and 670 tons of structural steel. It is heavy guarded and has lone allowed visitors 3 abstracted times.

One sojourn was connected Sept. 23, 1974, erstwhile the vault was opened to journalists and a legislature delegation. Before this, President Franklin D. Roosevelt was the lone idiosyncratic to entree the vaults. The 2nd sojourn was connected Aug. 24, 2017, erstwhile Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin and legislature representatives visited.

Why is Elon Musk visiting Fort Knox?

The main crushed is to spot if the golden is inactive there. Starting past week, Musk posted connected X, questioning if the golden was inactive present: "Who is confirming that golden wasn't stolen from Fort Knox? Maybe it's there, possibly it's not. That golden is owned by the American public! We privation to cognize if it's inactive there."

While determination has been nary grounds of missing golden astatine Fort Knox up to this point, Musk inactive posted connected X, saying that determination should beryllium a live video walkthrough of the depository.

Mnuchin told CNBC connected Thursday that it would beryllium casual to person Fort Knox audited if that's what Trump wants.

"The golden was determination erstwhile I visited it, and I anticipation nobody's moved it. I'm definite they haven't," helium added.