Elon Musk Slams Trump’s Massive Tax Bill \ Newslooks \ Washington DC \ Mary Sidiqi \ Evening Edition \ President Trump is aggressively pushing a massive tax and spending bill through the Senate ahead of a July 4th deadline. The package, already narrowly passed by the House, includes sweeping tax cuts and spending reductions, but faces internal GOP friction and public backlash. Critics, including Elon Musk and Senate Democrats, decry the bill’s impact on health and welfare programs.
Quick Looks
- Trump wants bill signed by July 4 deadline.
- Senate revising 1,000+ page package passed narrowly by House.
- Bill includes $4.5 trillion in tax cuts and spending reforms.
- Elon Musk calls bill a “disgusting abomination.”
- Democrats warn of Medicaid, SNAP, and green energy cuts.
- Senate GOP leaders under pressure to unify votes.
- Package also raises debt ceiling by $4 trillion.
- Trump lashes out at GOP holdouts like Sen. Rand Paul.
Deep Look
Former President Donald Trump is mounting a high-pressure campaign to fast-track a sweeping tax and spending bill through the U.S. Senate, aiming to sign it into law by the Fourth of July. Branded by Trump as the “ONE, BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL,” the massive legislative package seeks to extend and expand Trump-era tax cuts, slash government spending, impose new social program restrictions, and authorize significant border security investments. But despite Trump’s determined push and personal lobbying, the legislation faces steep hurdles inside the Senate and a firestorm of public criticism.
The bill, which runs more than 1,000 pages, passed the House of Representatives late last month by a razor-thin margin of one vote. Now it moves to the Senate, where the Republican majority—53 seats—leaves little room for internal disagreement. Senators returned to Capitol Hill this week under mounting pressure not only from Trump but also from Treasury officials warning of a looming fiscal cliff. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has cautioned lawmakers that without action to raise the national debt ceiling, the federal government could run out of money to meet its financial obligations by mid-July or early August.
Trump has been working behind the scenes and in public to rally support. He met with Senate Majority Whip John Thune at the White House earlier in the week and has been making one-on-one phone calls to senators. According to Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Trump asked directly, “How do you think the bill’s going to go in the Senate? Do you think there’s going to be problems?”
Indeed, there may be. While House Republicans squeezed the bill through, Senate Republicans are struggling to maintain party unity amid growing concern over the bill’s more controversial components. Central to the legislation is an effort to make permanent the tax cuts from the 2017 Trump tax law. In addition, the bill introduces new tax relief proposals, including exemptions on tips, tax breaks for overtime pay, and incentives aimed at working-class families and small businesses.
However, the tax relief comes at a significant cost—estimated at more than $4.5 trillion over the next decade. To offset these reductions without dramatically expanding the national deficit, the bill also proposes deep spending cuts. These include stricter work requirements for social safety net programs like Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), cuts to green energy subsidies, and a $350 billion boost for border enforcement, deportation operations, and other national security measures.
Estimates indicate that more than 8.6 million Americans could lose access to healthcare due to the Medicaid provisions, while nearly 4 million would be dropped from SNAP. The backlash from these proposed cuts has been swift and loud. At town halls across the country, Republican lawmakers are facing angry constituents who fear the consequences of the proposed reforms.
Adding fuel to the fire is Elon Musk, one of Trump’s high-profile allies, who blasted the legislation on his social media platform, X. “This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination,” Musk wrote, accusing those who supported the bill of betrayal. House Speaker Mike Johnson attempted to deflect the criticism, saying Musk was “terribly wrong” about the legislation, and that he had personally explained the bill to Musk during a 20-minute phone call.
Nonetheless, the internal divisions are becoming harder to ignore. Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.), known for his libertarian stance on federal spending, has taken a hardline stance against the bill’s inclusion of a $4 trillion debt ceiling increase. Trump, in a scathing social media post, criticized Paul for “voting NO on everything” and for having “crazy” ideas. Paul, unmoved, responded that while he supports Trump personally, “I can’t in good conscience give up every principle that I stand for.”
Meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has characterized the legislation as “ugly to its very core,” arguing that the bill represents a massive transfer of wealth to the ultra-rich at the expense of low-income Americans. “Behind the smoke and mirrors lies a cruel and draconian truth: tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy paid for by gutting health care for millions,” Schumer said.
Inside the Senate, negotiations are ongoing. Lawmakers are considering adjustments to some of the House-approved measures to secure enough votes. One flashpoint is the proposed $40,000 cap on state and local tax (SALT) deductions, which is deeply unpopular with Republicans from high-tax states like New York and California. Some senators also oppose a House provision that would allow for auctioning portions of the electromagnetic spectrum, citing concerns over national security and regulatory overreach.
Other components of the bill, such as a $35 copayment for Medicaid services and the elimination of state-level provider taxes that help fund rural hospitals, are also drawing resistance—particularly from moderate senators like Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), who have historically defended healthcare access in rural and underserved areas.
Thune, seen as a steady but newer GOP leader, is caught in a balancing act. He must maintain the loyalty of conservative hardliners while also accommodating centrist senators who are demanding revisions. Trump, however, has made it clear he wants the bill passed largely intact—and quickly. “Passing THE ONE, BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL is a Historic Opportunity to turn our Country around,” Trump wrote online, calling on senators to “get this Bill to MY DESK before the Fourth of JULY.”
At the same time, the Congressional Budget Office is expected to release a nonpartisan analysis of the bill’s long-term effects on the federal deficit and economic outlook. Republicans have already begun preemptively discrediting the CBO’s findings, claiming they often understate the positive economic impacts of tax cuts.
For now, the fate of the bill remains uncertain. The next few weeks will test not only the cohesion of Senate Republicans but also the strength of Trump’s influence over the party as he prepares for a potential second term. With the clock ticking and the debt ceiling deadline looming, the GOP must decide whether to close ranks around the Trump-backed package or risk legislative failure on what Trump insists is a defining economic vision.
If passed, the bill would represent one of the most consequential shifts in federal tax and spending priorities in decades, altering the size and scope of social safety net programs, expanding tax relief in targeted areas, and establishing Trump’s economic doctrine as the Republican mainstream.
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