Elon Musk intensified his criticism of President Donald Trump’s sweeping tax-cut bill on Wednesday, warning that it would plunge the country into “debt slavery” and calling on lawmakers to “KILL the BILL.”
“Call your Senator, Call your Congressman,” Musk wrote as he complained about the budget package at length on his social media site X. “Bankrupting America is NOT ok!”
“A new spending bill should be drafted that doesn’t massively grow the deficit and increase the debt ceiling by 5 TRILLION DOLLARS,” the Tesla
and SpaceX CEO noted in another post.
Musk’s tirade began Tuesday, when he ripped what Trump has dubbed the “big, beautiful bill” as a “disgusting abomination.”
Since then, Musk has posted or reposted over two dozen times on X, either directly criticizing the bill or weighing in on related topics like the size of the U.S. national debt, CNBC reported.
The ongoing wave of criticism comes just days after Elon Musk stepped down from his temporary role in the Trump administration, where he led the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a group focused on reducing the size of the federal government, CNBC noted.
Although Musk had already expressed opposition to the bill, his increasingly vocal attacks have caught the White House off guard, according to a senior official who spoke to CNBC on condition of anonymity. The official said President Trump is more disappointed than frustrated by Musk’s comments and remains committed to passing the legislation, the outlet added.
The official added that they were not aware of any direct communication between Trump and Musk regarding the dispute.
Musk, who is reportedly shifting his focus back to his electric vehicle and space ventures, was partly motivated to speak out because the bill includes cuts to an EV tax credit that benefits Tesla, a source familiar with the matter told NBC News.
Musk had reportedly explored the possibility of continuing his role in the Trump administration as a “special government employee” beyond the 130-day legal limit, but the White House declined the request, according to NBC News, confirming earlier reporting by Axios.
NBC also cited two additional sources of tension: the administration’s rejection of Musk’s proposal to have the Federal Aviation Administration operate via his Starlink satellite network, and its decision to withdraw his preferred nominee for NASA administrator.
While President Trump praised Musk during his farewell at the White House last Friday, he has not publicly addressed Musk’s sharp criticism of the tax bill.
However, on Wednesday afternoon, Trump’s account on Truth Social reposted a screenshot of Musk thanking him for the opportunity to lead the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
Russ Vought, the current Office of Management and Budget director who also filled that role during Trump’s first term, came out in support of the big, beautiful bill, refuting the Congressional Budget Office’s claim that the measure would inflate the budget.
“OMB just reviewed the new CBO score of the One Big Beautiful bill. It confirms what we knew about the bill at House passage. The bill REDUCES deficits by $1.4 trillion over ten years when you adjust for CBO’s one big gimmick–not using a realistic current policy baseline. It includes $1.7 trillion in mandatory savings, the most in history. If you care about deficits and debt, this bill dramatically improves the fiscal picture,” he posted on X.
“Reducing deficits sounds great until you read the fine print. When’s the last time CBO got it right?” wrote one user in response to Vought’s post.