Billionaire tech mogul Elon Musk has openly criticized a major policy move by President Donald Trump, signaling a growing rift between the two former allies. Musk, who played a key role in Trump’s re-election campaign and served as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), voiced disappointment over the administration’s newly passed tax and spending bill.
Speaking to CBS News, Musk said he was “disappointed” by the bill, which includes multi-trillion dollar tax breaks and a substantial increase in defense spending. The House of Representatives narrowly approved the legislation last week, and it now heads to the Senate for consideration.
“I was disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly,” Musk told CBS Sunday Morning. “It increases the budget deficit, not just decreases it,” he added, estimating that the plan could add up to $600 billion to the deficit in the next fiscal year.
The bill dubbed by Trump as “big and beautiful” pledges to extend tax cuts from the 2017 Trump administration, raise the debt ceiling to $4 trillion, and pour billions into defense and immigration enforcement. Musk, who had previously helped slash federal spending as Doge chief, believes the plan contradicts his efforts to reduce waste.
“It undermines the work that the Doge team is doing,” he said, referencing his cost-cutting advisory body. Musk had aimed to help the government save $1 trillion through layoffs, contract cancellations, and the curbing of foreign aid. Doge claims to have already saved $175 billion, though a BBC analysis questioned the evidence supporting that figure.
Trump, while praising the bill’s tax cuts, admitted to reporters that he wasn’t “happy about certain aspects.” However, he refrained from directly addressing Musk’s criticism.
The tech titan’s remarks follow his recent decision to step back from political involvement and focus on Tesla, where he has committed to remain CEO for another five years. Musk also signaled a significant reduction in his future political donations, after having reportedly contributed over $250 million to Trump’s 2024 campaign.
“I did what needed to be done,” Musk said of his tenure as Doge chief, defending his controversial cost-cutting moves despite backlash.
