Former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) head Elon Musk has come out swinging against the House-passed budget reconciliation bill that President Donald Trump has backed as the underpinning of his second-term legislative agenda.
But House Freedom Caucus Chair Andy Harris, R-Md., told Newsmax Thursday that Musk's desire to "kill the bill" could be a "laudable goal" if it's rooted in fiscal conservatism.
"Elon Musk spent the last 130 days cutting spending across the federal government," Harris said on "Wake Up America." "I think he realizes there's more spending that could be cut. I'm hoping that this urges the Senate to add a few more spending reductions to this bill to make it even better. So, if that's the goal of Elon Musk, I think that's a laudable goal. I'm hoping the Senate pays some attention to his warnings on the federal budget deficit and makes it even better than it is now."
Less than a week after leaving DOGE, Musk slammed Trump's "big, beautiful bill," calling it a "disgusting abomination" in an X post on Tuesday, before launching a public relations campaign Wednesday urging Americans to demand their representatives sink the bill.
Musk's criticism, and the Senate's work on the budget reconciliation bill, comes at a time when the House is working to approve a rescissions package, which would codify the spending cuts recommended by DOGE. Harris said that cuts are necessary to prevent looming "fiscal disaster."
"There's some people in Washington on my side of the aisle who don't want to cut any spending anywhere," he said. "So, they might be wringing their hands over this, but the bottom line is, if we can't cut the spending on these ridiculous foreign aid projects, and if we can't end the subsidies to National Public Radio and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and PBS, shame on us. Then we are going to have a fiscal disaster coming up. So, I'm hoping that next week, when this bill comes to the floor in the House, that it passes and then goes on to the Senate and passes as well."
Asked if the GOP has the votes to pass the rescissions package in the House, Harris said, "I think so."
"I think they cleverly put in very low-hanging fruit," he said. "I mean, again, if we can't decide that doing transgender comic books in foreign countries is something we shouldn't be funding with taxpayer dollars, shame on us."
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Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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