Elon Musk has slammed US President Donald Trump's plan to cut taxes and spending, marking a sharp break from the president he helped re-elect in 2024.
Trump's "Big Beautiful" budget reconciliation bill allows the US government to borrow more money and extends tax breaks approved during his first term at the White House, along with new ones he campaigned on.
The budget — which includes a massive buildup of $350 billion (€307bn) for border security, deportations and national security — was narrowly passed by the House of Representatives last month.
"Shame on those who voted for it," Musk said of the bill. In a series of posts on his social media platform X, Musk said the "outrageous, pork-filled" spending bill will "massively increase the already gigantic budget deficit to $2.5 trillion and burden America(n) citizens with crushingly unsustainable debt".
In its current form, the bill would lift the amount of money the US government can borrow to $4 trillion (€3.5). To avoid piling on to the nation's debt load, Republicans want to reduce federal spending by imposing work requirements for US citizens who rely on government safety net services, such as Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program benefits, known as SNAP.
The South African-born billionaire recently left his role in the Trump administration, where he oversaw DOGE, the body responsible for reducing US government spending and cutting federal jobs.
His comments are his strongest rebuke yet of Trump's policies. He previously called the bill "disapointing."
The legislation — which Trump calls his "big, beautiful bill" — would slash funding for electric vehicles and related technologies, including Musk's Tesla and SpaceX, the latter of which holds major defence contracts.
Musk followed his criticism by issuing a warning to Republicans. "In November next year, we fire all politicians who betrayed the American people," he wrote on X.
His threat is a sharp shift in tone for Musk, who previously pledged to help defeat Republicans deemed disloyal to Trump. Musk, the world's richest person, spent at least $250 million (€219m) supporting Trump’s campaign last year.
When stepping back from DOGE, Musk announced he would be spending "a lot less" on political campaigns, dedicating his time to his companies and his role as CEO of Tesla and SpaceX. He left the door open to political involvement "if I see a reason".
Some Republican lawmakers echoed Musk's concerns, with Kentucky Senator Rand Paul writing on X: “We can and must do better." Utah Senator Mike Lee said, "federal spending has become excessive,” adding that it causes inflation and “weaponises government.”
Others suggested that Musk's endorsement had minimal impact on their decision to vote the legislation forward.
“No matter what Elon Musk or anybody else says — and I don’t want to diminish him because I don’t think that’s fair — it’s still going to be second fiddle to President Trump,” Republican West Virginia Senator Shelley Moore Capito said.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt downplayed Musk’s criticism. "The president already knows where Elon Musk stood on this bill,” Leavitt said, and Musk’s post “doesn’t change the president’s opinion.”
Democrats, meanwhile, welcomed Musk's criticism of the bill, which Trump in May called “arguably the most significant piece of Legislation that will ever be signed in the History of our Country.”
“We’re in complete agreement,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said of Musk, standing alongside a poster-sized printout of Musk’s post during a Capitol news conference.
Trump has set a deadline of 4 July to pass the legislation through the Republican controlled Senate and sign it into law.
