Elon Musk has taken a sharp swipe at former President Donald Trump’s flagship tax proposal, calling it a threat to fiscal responsibility and a setback for efforts to cut government spending.
In a preview of an upcoming interview with CBS Sunday Morning, Musk said he was “disappointed” by what he described as a massive spending bill that increases the national deficit and undermines the work done by his former government efficiency team, known as DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency).
Musk Warns of Financial Collapse
The bill, recently passed by the House of Representatives and heading to the Senate, is poised to be one of Trump’s biggest legislative victories since returning to office. The former president hailed it as “perhaps the most significant legislative act ever signed in the history of our country.”
But critics argue the bill will do more harm than good. While it trims some social spending, nonpartisan estimates say it could add over $3.3 trillion to the national debt over the next decade. Musk, who has long warned that unchecked deficits could lead to a U.S. default, commented:
“A bill can be big, or it can be beautiful. I’m not sure it can be both. That’s just my personal view.”
Growing Rift with Trump
Musk’s remarks are his most direct criticism of Trump’s administration to date. Previously, he had clashed with officials over trade policy, calling Trump’s former trade adviser Peter Navarro “an idiot” and “dumber than a bucket of rocks,” and said lower tariffs are “generally a good idea.”
Musk also ran into resistance from cabinet members over budget cuts DOGE proposed for their agencies. He stepped down from DOGE last month, saying he needed to refocus on his businesses, especially Tesla, which has seen sales dip — partly due to Musk’s close association with Trump’s administration.
Since stepping back, Musk has said he’s returning to his usual routine of “working 24/7 and sleeping in conference rooms, server rooms, and factories.” His portfolio includes Tesla, SpaceX, and social platform X.
Scaling Back Political Spending
Last year, Musk spent nearly $300 million supporting Trump and other Republican candidates. But he recently said he plans to spend “significantly less” on politics going forward, adding that he’s “already given enough.”
He’s also expressed frustration with lawmakers who, in his view, blocked DOGE’s cost-cutting efforts. While the initiative claimed to have saved $175 billion so far, Musk originally predicted savings of up to $2 trillion.
However, a Financial Times investigation found only a fraction of those savings could be verified, with the rest inflated by accounting errors, duplicates, and exaggerated projections.
