DAVID MARCUS: Musk vs. MAGA on Big, Beautiful Bill, but GOP needs both
Last week, there were rumblings that Elon Musk had reservations about President Donald Trump's so-called big, beautiful bill. This week, Musk, shall we say, clarified his position, calling the legislation a "disgusting abomination."
Tell us how you really feel, Mr. Musk.
And yes, his concerns that this bill, now in the Senate, could balloon the national debt, though disputed by the White House, are not particularly far-fetched. Until Trump, cutting as much spending as possible was Republican orthodoxy.
The problem for those like Musk, who want to see the bill revamped to cut the debt is not just that GOP margins in Congress are as narrow as a coin slot, it's that Trump's base, the only group of people he consistently pleases, like the bill, and they like it a lot.
A recent poll showed that 44% of Americans approve of the bill, while 38% oppose it, pretty decent numbers already, but among those polled who "support Trump-like policies," the number is a whopping 78%.
The most popular provisions of the bill, as I have reported numerous times on the ground, are no tax on overtime and tips, which polls at nearly 80% approval among all American voters. Santa Claus wishes he was that popular.
This is a real impasse between Musk and Trump's base, and Musk has proven to be a very valuable ally not just for Trump but for the GOP in general. His purchase of Twitter and its transformation into free speech champion X has been a major shift in our political discourse. One for the better for conservatives and the country.
Musk also has the money needed to bankroll any campaign he chooses to, and conversely, to use that money to primary those Republicans he deems ineffective on the debt, a threat he made explicit this week.
Money carries a lot of water, but at the end of the day, if you are a candidate for Congress in a GOP primary, what do you want more, a blank check from Elon Musk, or an endorsement from Donald Trump? For now, obviously the latter.
Trump has been wise to play it cool, not clapping back at Musk. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt took the right tone in saying, the president was aware of the criticism, but, "this is one big, beautiful bill, and Trump is sticking to it."
In other words, they will have to agree to disagree.
This puts the ball in Musk's court. Even after his outbursts against the bill, there is no reason he cannot continue to work with Trump, as he promised in their press conference in the Oval Office together last week. No lasting harm has been done here.
Democrats are trying to make hay out of Musk's opposition, but after spending a year demonizing him, the effort is simply laughable.
enate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-NY, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-NY, look like fools as they furiously scratch out, "is a fascist," on their Musk protest signs and write in, "is absolutely right."
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-NY, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-NY, look like fools as they furiously scratch out, "is a fascist," on their Musk protest signs and write in, "is absolutely right." You can't call a guy a Nazi and then say, "Hey look, the Nazi agrees with me!"
Much like Trump himself, Musk is a man who knows how to draw attention. But unlike Trump, he does not have a vast constituency of voters across America. What Musk has is a constituency of the powerful.
In populism, you have to do what is popular. It's right there in the name.
To paraphrase Benjamin Franklin, what Republicans have right now is a winning coalition, if they can keep it. There's a reason that so many ex-Democrats voted for Trump, and the GOP can't just suddenly shove massive austerity measures down their throats.
Back in the 1990s, then-Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich balanced the federal budget four times, but he didn't do it by fear-mongering. His Contract With America was not gloom and doom, it was hope, a hope for better government, better lives.
Ultimately, this is what is missing from Musk's impassioned and quite possibly correct howling from the rooftop about the debt. Voters need to hear the upside.
The one thing that every Republican agrees on is that, in some form, this bill has to pass. Otherwise they are presiding over a massive tax hike. It is likely, even with changes, Musk will not be pleased. The question then becomes, now what?
On every issue Musk holds dear, from not transing kids, to immigration, to birth rates, he is aligned with the GOP and in stark opposition to Democrats, who he has often accused of being afflicted with the "woke mind virus."
Musk has earned his place as an important voice in the Republican Party and conservative politics, but part of that role is also listening, and right now, the GOP base wants this bill.
Hopefully, by the fall, with this vote long gone behind us, Musk, the Trump administration, and Congress can all work to fight against the debt, and that is why everyone should dearly hope that Elon Musk does not take his ball and go home.
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