The US president has reacted to the billionaire’s disapproval of his tax and spending bill
US President Donald Trump has said he is “very disappointed” with Elon Musk following the tech billionaire’s criticism of his tax and spending bill.
Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, and owner of X, recently stepped down from running the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a body created by Trump in his second term to implement widespread federal spending cuts, saying he will return to focusing on his business ventures.
The tech mogul criticized the legislation known as the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ for increasing the national debt and thus counteracting the objectives of DOGE.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Trump said that Musk – who he claimed knew “everything” about the bill – suddenly had a problem with it “when he found out that we’re going to have to cut the EV mandate, because that’s billions and billions of dollars.”
He went on to say: “And if you saw the statements he made about me … I’m very disappointed in Elon. I’ve helped Elon a lot.”
Musk has stepped up his attacks on Trump’s tax-cut bill, claiming this week that it would push the US into “debt slavery” and urging lawmakers to “KILL the BILL.” The House passed the president’s flagship legislation in May, and Trump aims to sign the final version by the Fourth of July, pending Senate approval.
Musk pushed back on Trump’s claim that he knew the bill better than anyone, posting on X that this is “False” and that he was never shown the legislation.
In a separate post, the billionaire upped the ante by accusing the president of “ingratitude.”
“Without me, Trump would have lost the election, Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51-49 in the Senate,” he wrote.
The bill, strongly backed by Trump, seeks to make the 2017 tax cuts permanent and introduce further tax reductions, while boosting spending in areas such as defense and border security.
Critics warn it would disproportionately benefit the wealthy and significantly worsen the national debt. A Congressional Budget Office analysis released this week projects the bill would add $2.4 trillion to deficits over the next decade and leave 10.9 million more Americans without health insurance by 2034.
Musk, who had been credited with helping achieve an estimated $175 billion in savings through agency closures and workforce reductions under the DOGE initiative, voiced concern that the bill’s provisions could undo those gains.
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