Tech billionaire Elon Musk has ignited controversy by savaging the House-passed “Big, Beautiful Bill,” though Trump White House insiders claim his fiery “outburst” was entirely predictable
Elon Musk outburst over the House-passed “Big, Beautiful Bill” has sent ripples through Washington, but former Trump White House confidantes have indicated they were far from surprised by the tech billionaire’s strong reaction.
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They noted the former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) luminary was bound to find something to quarrel with the administration about eventually.
Musk, 53, who in April reportedly had a heated exchange with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent regarding their visions for the IRS, shook Washington on Tuesday by labelling the signature Republican legislation “a disgusting abomination.”
He went further, vowing to campaign to “fire” Republican lawmakers who supported it.
“I’d say most knew he’d throw a fit sometime this year. It was exciting but not surprising,” a Trumpworld source told The Post, commenting on the recent eruption.
Another individual close to the White House added, “I do think he didn’t leave on the best of terms. But I also think there’s a general awareness [that] this is just the way he operates.”
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO continued his offensive on Wednesday, declaring, “A new spending bill should be drafted that doesn’t massively grow the deficit and increase the debt ceiling by 5 TRILLION DOLLARS.”
He added in another X post: “Call your Senator, Call your Congressman, Bankrupting America is NOT ok! KILL the BILL.”
A second insider suggested it was understandable that Musk would take issue with his May 30 departure as a special government employee coinciding with the White House’s push to pass a bill that the Congressional Budget Office predicted would add $2.4 trillion to the federal deficit.
“His most legitimate point relates to DOGE and the fact that he exposed a bunch of waste and inefficiency with big government contractors like Accenture,” this person said, “but right as he leaves they get awarded massive new contracts and it feels like ‘back to business as usual.’”
Accenture CEO Julie Spellman Sweet had noted on March 20 that the IT and management consulting company had lost federal contracts after DOGE reviewed them.
However, since then, business has resumed for the Ireland-based firm, including a significant $336 million contract with the Air Force announced merely six days after Sweet’s complaint.
Despite the current friction, Musk’s departure from his White House role appeared cordial, with President Trump presenting him with a key to the White House during an Oval Office ceremony.
Press secretary Karoline Leavitt also downplayed Musk’s initial angry posts on Tuesday, telling reporters that “the president already knows where Elon Musk stood on this bill” and that “it doesn’t change his opinion.”
Sources close to Musk confirmed on Tuesday night that his impassioned criticism of the legislation stems from four specific grievances: the House GOP overturning Biden-era electric vehicle tax credits, the White House refusing to extend his 130-day special government employee tenure, the Federal Aviation Administration not utilising Starlink satellites for air traffic control, and Trump’s recent withdrawal of the nomination for Musk ally Jared Isaacman to lead NASA.
However, a third source close to the White House suggested that Musk’s issues might be more “personal” than philosophical, arguing, “I think Elon doesn’t totally understand how this works, and you aren’t going to change the way the [government] operates.”
This source added, “If Trump did [what Musk had asked], the media would be saying he’s giving Elon favorable treatment. So it’s a tough situation.”
