The SEC doesn't have any choice. It can't make any judgment about the company's business plan or prospects. If the initial registration statement contains the required content, and that content is presented in the correct form, then the SEC will deem it effective.
However, I see that NKLA's initial registration statement, an S-1, was filed In April 2018, and deemed effective in May 2018:
The transaction was a merger involving a blank check company, so yeah, maybe the SEC should have taken a closer look. It all seems to be quite complicated, and I'm too sleepy even to try to read it now.
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