Allies of President-elect Trump lashed out Wednesday over a massive government funding deal ahead of a looming deadline at the end of the week, pushing for lawmakers to oppose the agreement and complicating an already difficult task for House GOP leaders to get the legislation across the finish line.
Notably, Trump himself has yet to weigh in on the roughly 1,500-page bill unveiled Tuesday evening, but some of his most prominent supporters and advisers expressed outrage at the proposal, urging lawmakers to reject it and suggesting those who support it should face consequences.
“Any member of the House or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending bill deserves to be voted out in 2 years!” Elon Musk, a close Trump ally who is leading an advisory commission to cut government spending, posted on X, the social media platform he owns.
Musk posted several additional messages on the platform criticizing specific provisions in the legislation, saying the bill “should not pass” and asking if followers had ever “seen a bigger piece of pork?”
Vivek Ramaswamy, who was tapped by Trump to co-lead the "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE) alongside Musk, also posted a lengthy message criticizing the size and scope of the funding bill.
“We're grateful for DOGE's warm reception on Capitol Hill. Nearly everyone agrees we need a smaller & more streamlined federal government, but actions speak louder than words,” Ramaswamy wrote on X. “This is an early test. The bill should fail.”
Steve Bannon, Trump’s onetime chief White House strategist, said on his "War Room" podcast Wednesday that the bill should fail and suggested Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) should not continue as leader of the GOP conference.
“He’s got to go. And people sitting there, ‘Well, President Trump supports him.’ Well hey, President Trump supports him until he doesn’t support him,” Bannon said.
Donald Trump Jr. seized on a provision highlighted by Trump cheerleader Benny Johnson that would purportedly allow offices to block the disclosure of House data, something Johnson tied to potential probes of the panel that investigated the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
“So the house is going to vote to protect itself from glaring and obvious wrongdoing?” Trump Jr. posted on X. “The American people didn’t vote for this. They voted for the opposite. They voted for transparency. This cannot pass.”
House Republican leaders on Tuesday released the text of a continuing resolution, which combines a continuation of government funding through March 14 with a number of add-ons, including disaster assistance for hurricane damage and farmers; a health care deal that includes reforms to the pharmacy benefit manager industry; an extension of the farm bill; and a provision that could set the stage for the Washington Commanders to return to playing their home games in D.C. instead of in Maryland.
Speaker Johnson said earlier Wednesday that he talked to Musk about the funding deal and that the SpaceX founder and Tesla CEO understands the “impossible” position the Speaker is in.
Ramaswamy’s post came after he was consulted by Republican leaders.
