At the behest of billionaire Elon Musk and president-elect Donald Trump, Republicans scrapped a bipartisan agreement to keep the government funded for the next three months on Wednesday, just two days ahead of a deadline for avoiding a shutdown.
Knowing he had to secure some votes from Democrats in the near-evenly split House of Representatives, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) had crafted a continuing resolution that included raising the debt limit until March. Now that the bill has been shot down, it’s unclear whether a shutdown can be averted.
The bill included a number of Democratic Party demands, such as new regulations for health plan administrators, federal funds to rebuild the collapsed bridge in Baltimore, pay raises for members of Congress, and other provisions. The bill also included agreements to raise funding for responses to natural disasters by more than $110 billion, and $10 billion in additional aid to farmers across the U.S.
Upset with the continuing resolution heading for a vote later this week, Musk — who is set to lead the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) within the Trump administration — spent most of Wednesday railing against the bill, publishing more than 100 posts on his social media site X calling for Republicans to oppose it.
Within those posts, Musk wrongly stated that Democrats were calling for a 40 percent increase in pay for lawmakers (when, in fact, the raise would have represented a 3.8 percent increase, the first raise for members of Congress since 2009); falsely claimed that the bill would block Republicans from being able to investigate the work of the January 6 committee; and wrongly asserted that the bill would force taxpayers to pay for a new NFL stadium in Washington, D.C. (The bill merely transfers management of an existing stadium to the district.)
Musk also claimed that the government and the economy would “be fine” if there were to be a shutdown until Trump becomes president on January 20. Past shutdowns showcase how wrong he is — a shutdown crisis during Trump’s first term as president, for example, cost the U.S. economy $11 billion, and a month-long shutdown right now is likely to cost billions of dollars, too.
A lengthy shutdown could also make it harder for people living in the U.S. to access government services. National parks, museums and zoos could temporarily shutter, while other offices could have to shorten hours or close completely. Millions of federal workers would be laid off and others would have to continue working without pay. And while disbursements for Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid would continue, under a shutdown it’s possible that recipients of those benefits could see response delays if there are issues with their payments.
Following Musk’s tirade on X, Trump announced his opposition to the bill later that day, demanding that the entire legislation be renegotiated. “Republicans must GET SMART and TOUGH,” a joint statement from Trump and vice president-elect J.D. Vance read.
Some commentators have noted the timing of Trump’s opposition to the bill.
“Johnson probably wouldn’t be in this position if it weren’t for Musk, who spent all day Wednesday stoking rage on the right over Johnson’s deal. There was little evidence Trump cared much about the [continuing resolution] before that,” read an analysis from Politico’s daily “Playbook.”
That analysis continued:
The most prominent theory of what happened yesterday is this, per multiple Hill Republicans: Musk, as the anointed co-chair of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency panel, got waaay out over his spending-slashing skis and backed Trump into a corner.
Indeed, there are other indications that Trump wasn’t initially opposed to the bill’s passage, as he had privately urged Johnson to pass a continuing resolution right after he was elected president this year, to avoid any drama at the start of his term next month.
Perhaps trying to steer the spotlight back onto himself, Trump has now called for abolishing the debt ceiling, stating in a phone interview with NBC News that doing so would be the “smartest thing [Congress] could do,” and that he would “support that entirely.”
Trump also claimed that the debt ceiling “doesn’t mean anything, except psychologically” — demonstrating a deep lack of understanding regarding what the debt ceiling actually is.
Over the past decade, there have been several calls to eliminate the need to raise the debt ceiling through legislative decree, including by allowing the president to issue an executive order to raise the debt ceiling. But the debt ceiling, which is the amount the federal government is authorized to borrow in debt, would still exist if that were the case.
Ridding the U.S. of the debt ceiling entirely could feasibly lower the credit of the country, as happened after a different debt ceiling crisis in 2011. A significant change in the country’s credit rating could lead to a crisis of its own, in terms of the borrowing power of debt the U.S. could ask for from other countries.
Many Democratic lawmakers condemned Musk for his role in blocking the agreement, questioning who is actually set to be “president” of the next administration.
“You have to ask Donald Trump if Elon Musk is the one making decisions,” Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-New Hampshire) told HuffPost.
“It’s not Donald Trump asking for this. It’s very clearly President Elon Musk asking for this,” Rep. Daniel Goldman (D-New York) said on Bluesky.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) also weighed in on the matter, noting that “the richest man on Earth, President Elon Musk,” was responsible for the bill being killed.
“Billionaires must not be allowed to run our government,” Sanders added.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Washington) echoed that sentiment, calling Musk a “shadow president.”
“It’s clear who’s in charge, and it’s not President-elect Donald Trump,” Jayapal wrote on social media.
Defying Trump’s right-wing agenda from Day One
Inauguration Day is coming up soon, and at Truthout, we plan to defy Trump’s right-wing agenda from Day One.
Looking to the first year of Trump’s presidency, we know that the most vulnerable among us will be harmed. Militarized policing in U.S. cities and at the borders will intensify. The climate crisis will deteriorate further. The erosion of free speech has already begun, and we anticipate more attacks on journalism.
It will be a terrifying four years to produce social justice-driven journalism. But we’re not falling to despair, because we know there are reasons to believe in our collective power.
The stories we publish at Truthout are part of the antidote to creeping authoritarianism. And this year, we promise we will kick into an even higher gear to give you truthful news that cuts against the disinformation, vitriol, hate and violence. We promise to publish analyses that will serve the needs of the movements we all rely on to survive the next four years, and even build for the future. We promise to be responsive, to recognize you as members of our community with a vital stake and voice in this work.
Please show your support for Truthout with a tax-deductible donation (either once today or on a monthly basis).