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Elon Musk is criticising the centrepiece of United States President Donald Trump’s legislative agenda, a significant fracture in a partnership that was forged during last year’s presidential campaign.
The billionaire entrepreneur, who supported Trump’s candidacy with at least $250 million and has worked for his administration as a senior adviser, said he was “disappointed” by what the president calls his “big beautiful bill”.
The legislation, which is formally named ‘The One Big Beautiful Bill’, includes a mix of tax cuts and enhanced immigration enforcement. While speaking to CBS, Musk described it as a “massive spending bill” that increases the federal deficit and “undermines the work” of his Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE.
“I think a bill can be big or it could be beautiful,” Musk said. “But I don’t know if it could be both.”
His CBS interview came out Tuesday night. Trump, speaking in the Oval Office on Wednesday, defended his agenda by talking about the delicate politics involved with negotiating the legislation.
“I’m not happy about certain aspects of it, but I’m thrilled by other aspects of it,” he said.
Trump also suggested that more changes could be made.
“We’re going to see what happens,” he said. “It’s got a way to go.”
Republicans recently pushed the measure through the House and are debating it in the Senate.
Musk’s comments come as he steps back from his government work, rededicating himself to companies like the electric automaker Tesla and rocket manufacturer SpaceX. He’s also said he will reduce his political spending, because “I think I’ve done enough”.
At times, he’s seemed chastened by his experience working in government. Although he hoped that DOGE would generate US$1 trillion in spending cuts, he’s fallen far short of that target.
The White House is set to send proposed rescissions, a mechanism used to cancel previously authorised spending, to Capitol Hill to solidify some of DOGE’s cuts.
A spokesperson for the Office of Management and Budget said the package will include US$1.1 billion from the Corporation of Public Broadcasting, which funds NPR and PBS, and US$8.3 billion in foreign assistance.
It’s unclear what, if any, impact Musk’s comments about the bill will have on the legislative debate.
Speaker Mike Johnson has asked senators to make as few changes to the legislation as possible, saying that House Republicans reached a “very delicate balance” that could be upended with major changes. The narrowly divided House will have to vote again on final passage once the Senate alters the bill.
However, Musk’s criticism could embolden Republicans who want bigger spending cuts. Republican Utah Senator Mike Lee reposted a Fox News story about Musk’s interview while also adding his own take on the measure, saying there was “still time to fix it”.
“The Senate version will be more aggressive,” Lee said. “It can, it must, and it will be. Or it won’t pass.”
Only two Republicans – Representatives Warren Davidson of Ohio and Thomas Massie of Kentucky – voted against the bill when the House took up the measure last week.
Davidson took note of Musk’s comments on social media.
“Hopefully, the Senate will succeed with the Big Beautiful Bill where the House missed the moment,” he wrote. “Don’t hope someone else will cut deficits someday, know it has been done this Congress.”
The Congressional Budget Office, in a preliminary estimate, said the tax provisions in The One Big Beautiful Bill would increase federal deficits by US$3.8 trillion over the decade, while the changes to Medicaid, food stamps and other services would reduce spending by slightly more than US$1 trillion over the same period.
House Republican leaders say increased economic growth would allow the bill to be deficit neutral or reducing, but outside watchdogs are sceptical. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates the bill would add US$3 trillion to the debt, including interest, over the next decade.
AP
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