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WASHINGTON.- In the first great demonstration of his influence since the election of Donald Trump, Elon Musk stopped suddenly a bipartisan budget proposal through constant posting on his X megaphone and using threats to Republicans to face primary challenges.
In more than 150 separate posts on X, which began before dawn on Wednesday, Musk demanded that Republicans walk away from a bipartisan spending deal that was intended to avoid a government shutdown over Christmas. promised political retaliation against anyone who voted in favor of the bill backed by the speaker of the House of Representatives, the Republican Michael Johnsonwho called Musk on Wednesday to ask him to stop posting about the bill.
Musk also spread misinformation about the bill, including false claims that it contained new aid for Ukraine or $3 billion in funding for a new stadium in Washington.
The social media posts of the richest man in the world influenced that Trump will criticize the agreement: Late on Wednesday, the president-elect issued his own statement in which he described the bill as “betrayal of our country.”
Indeed, the agreement failure after 38 Republicans voted against it in the House of Representatives.
Was a remarkable moment for Elon Musk, who, without ever having held public office, seems to have become in the greatest voice amplifier of the next president of the United Stateseven surpassing him in influence on social networks: while Trump has 96.2 million followers on X, Musk has more than double that, with 207.9 million. Furthermore, his fortune, estimated at $458 billion according to Bloomberg, eclipses Trump’s $6.61 billion.
This week also marked the first time Musk was able to use his website as a digital whip, urging lawmakers to support his desired outcome.
His actions caused a negative reaction of some legislators who showed themselves indignant for their interference in the legislative process. Some even accused him of acting more like a president or vice president than a billionaire executive.
“Democrats and Republicans spent months negotiating a bipartisan agreement to fund our government,” the left-wing senator wrote in X Bernie Sandersof Vermont, who has long criticized the power of wealthy business executives. “The richest man on Earth, President Elon Musk, doesn’t like it. Will Republicans kiss the ring? Billionaires should not be allowed to run our government”.
“Welcome to the presidency of Elon Musk,” Democratic representative for California Robert García wrote in X.
Many House Republicans have been deeply frustrated by Musk’s involvement in budget negotiations and rightfully concerned about his threat to find primary challengers to take on any lawmaker who votes for a spending bill. that you don’t like. The legislators said that They were alarmed and had never seen a donor openly exert so much influence over politics after their preferred candidate won an election.
“There’s no question that he wields a lot of influence over Republicans right now because of his proximity to Trump,” said Chris Pack, former communications director for the National Republican Congressional Committee and the Senate Leadership Fund.
But Pack also said that Musk’s threats pose potential risks for House Republicans, who begin next year with a five-seat majority that will be temporarily reduced by Trump’s nomination of some GOP lawmakers to positions in his administration.
“This is not going to help advance the agenda if you end up hurting several Republicans in moderate districts where they have a minimal advantagecausing them to lose in the primaries,” Pack said. “The only thing you would achieve with that is to hand those districts over to the Democrats.”.
Musk spent about $250 million during the presidential campaign to support Trump, largely contributing to America PACa super political action committee that deployed pollsters, aired television ads and reached voters digitally in battleground states. After the elections, he had pointed out that was willing to support GOP primaries against Republican congressmen running for re-election in 2026 and waver over Trump’s appointments and agenda.
On Wednesday he renewed the threat.
“Any member of the House or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending bill deserves to be expelled within two years!” he wrote in X. He also called it “one of the worst bills ever written.”
Musk was not the only one in stoking Republican anger against the bill, which included several compromise measures to gain Democratic support in the Senate in the final weeks before Republicans take control of that chamber. The biotechnology entrepreneur and former Republican Party presidential candidate Vivek RamaswamyMusk’s partner at the head of the new Department of Government Efficiency, He also posted against the project, as did Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr.
Musk minimized his influence at some moments and, after receiving praise on social networks, he commented: “The only thing I can do is bring the issues to people’s attention, so that they can express their support if they wish.”. For his part, the president-elect told NBC News that he had spoken with Musk before the Tesla CEO made his first publications.
“I told him that if he agreed with me, he could make a public statement,” Trump said.
Karoline Leavitt, the incoming White House press secretary, rejected criticism from Democrats that suggested Musk was calling the shots.
“As soon as President Trump made his official position on the CR known, Republicans on Capitol Hill echoed his point of view,” Leavitt said in a statement, referring to the continuing resolution. “President Trump is the leader of the Republican Party. And period”.
Throughout the day on Wednesday, Musk responded to X posts from Republican members of the House of Representatives announcing their opposition to the bill with words of gratitude, and punctuating their public commitments.
And he took a victory lap after Trump spoke out against the bill: “The voice of the people was heard. “This was a good day for America.”
He responded to Kentucky Representative Andy Barr’s post like this: “The phone hasn’t stopped ringing today. And do you know why? Because they were reading tweets… from Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy.”
On Thursday afternoon, before the new plan was voted on, Musk declared its success and posted a photo of the new, scaled-down proposal next to the lengthy original measure he helped block. “This shows how much your voice matters.”wrote. “And having a president like @realDonaldTrump means your voice is finally heard.”
Conservative activists gather at annual AmericaFest event in Phoenix they applauded Musk on Thursday and celebrated the idea that could replace Johnson as speaker of the House. There is no requirement that the president be an elected member of the House of Representatives.
“Should Mike Johnson still be Speaker of the House?” conservative host Jack Posobiec asked his audience during a live taping of his talk show, prompting a chorus of “Nooooo!!!” by his audience.
Johnson had planned to attend AmericaFest, but canceled after the budget agreement failed.
“Should Elon Musk be Speaker of the House?” Posobiec later asked his audience, unleashing an enthusiastic applause.
AP Agency and The New York Times
