 "Business interests & more: Why Musk is targeting Trump’s ‘big, beautiful’ bill")
Billionaire Elon Musk is not hiding his ire at United States President Donald Trump’s tax-and-spending bill anymore. A fierce supporter and adviser of the Republican leader, the Tesla CEO has berated “One, Big, Beautiful Bill,” passed by the House of Representatives last month, as a “disgusting abomination".
This public rebuke is a far cry from his restrained reaction to Trump’s bill in May when Musk said he was “disappointed” by the spending bill. It also comes in the wake of the tech billionaire’s recent departure from the US administration.
Let’s take a closer look at what’s going on.
Elon Musk blasts Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’
Elon Musk has castigated Trump’s centrepiece bill — the One, Big, Beautiful Bill of tax and spending cuts.
Taking to X, he wrote on Tuesday (June 3), “I’m sorry, but I just can’t stand it anymore.
This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination.”
Musk further added, “Shame on those who voted for it: you know you did wrong. You know it.”
The billionaire backed his scathing criticism, saying the bill would highly increase the US budget deficit — when the government’s expenditure is more than its revenues.
“It will massively increase the already gigantic budget deficit to $2.5 trillion (!!!) and burden America[n] citizens with crushingly unsustainable debt,” he added.
It will massively increase the already gigantic budget deficit to $2.5 trillion (!!!) and burden America citizens with crushingly unsustainable debt https://t.co/dHCj3pprJO
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 3, 2025
In another post, Musk went on to threaten Republicans. “In November next year, we fire all politicians who betrayed the American people,” he wrote later on Tuesday.
The “big, beautiful” bill has been passed by the House of Representatives and is currently under debate in the Senate.
The legislation includes multi-trillion dollar tax breaks and allows the US government to borrow more money.
Musk’s sharp censure of the bill reflects the widening rift between him and President Trump since the tech billionaire left the US administration last week.
In an interview with CBS News in May, Musk said he was “disappointed to see the massive spending” bill. He said it “frankly … increases the budget deficit, not just decreases it, and undermines the work that the Doge [Department of Government Efficiency] team is doing."
“I think a bill can be big or it can be beautiful, but I don’t know if it can be both. My personal opinion,” Musk added.
As per BBC, in its current version, Trump’s signature tax breaks and spending cuts bill is projected to swell the budget deficit by about $600 billion in the next fiscal year.
Why Musk dislikes Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’
Elon Musk ’s disapproval of the bill stems from various reasons.
Trump’s legislation would cut funding for electric vehicles and related technologies, which would hurt Musk’s businesses. The bill slashes the electric vehicle tax credit that would impact the billionaire’s Tesla, America’s largest electric vehicle manufacturer.
Musk’s company spent at least $240,000 lobbying for the credit and other issues, as of April, the US news outlet Axios reported. Sources said he tried to promote the measure for the bill, but in vain.
The Tesla CEO, who spearheaded Doge, left the Trump administration after 129 days working to cut costs.
The US president, who gave Musk a celebratory Oval Office farewell, said that “he will, always, be with us, helping all the way”.
As per the Axios report, Musk, who was working as a “special government employee”, wanted to continue in the role beyond the 130-day deadline set for the unpaid advisory position. However, White House officials rejected this idea.
The Tesla CEO was also pushing for the use of his Starlink satellite system by the Federal Aviation Administration for national air traffic control, sources told the outlet. However, the Trump administration dismissed the proposal due to it being perceived as a conflict of interest and for technological reasons.
Musk’s disagreement with Trump also came to the limelight last week when the US president abruptly announced he is withdrawing the nomination of Jared Isaacman, an ally of the Tesla CEO, to lead Nasa.
According to Axios, buzz in the White House was that Sergio Gor, the director of the Office of Presidential Personnel who had clashed with Musk over nominees, was responsible for Trump’s decision.
However, two administration insiders disagreed that Gor was behind it. They said that Senators had objected to Isaacman for being a Democratic donor, and the White House was seeking a Republican loyalist.
“Perception is reality, though, and I’m pretty sure Elon thought the Nasa situation was a last insult,” the White House official told the news outlet. “So here we are.”
Is the Trump-Musk friendship over?
The question has gained significance amid Musk’s latest outburst against Trump’s “big, beautiful bill”.
However, the White House has attempted to downplay Musk’s criticism. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said: “The president already knows where Elon Musk stood on this bill,” adding that Musk’s post “doesn’t change the president’s opinion.”
The Trump and Musk relationship remains “generally amicable”, as per Vox.
Two people in frequent communication with the president and Musk told Axios that the duo is still “friends and allies”. However, they said that Trump was a bit annoyed by Musk’s “social media sabotage”.
Musk’s criticism could be a signal of increasing tensions between him and the US president.
The Tesla CEO previously said he plans to spend “a lot less” on political campaigns. His recent comments suggest otherwise — he may not be done with politics, just yet.
With inputs from agencies
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