A former top staffer to vice president Mike Pence trashed Congress for ceding their authority to President Donald Trump and Elon Musk.
Marc Short, a former Trump White House staffer who then led Pence's team, told CNN he didn't mind the tech billionaire slashing government spending by targeting entire agencies for closure and offering buyouts to millions of government workers, but he preferred that lawmakers were the ones making those cuts and not an unelected outside adviser.
"I actually don't have as much concern about that," Short said. "I think the reality is that most Americans view Elon Musk as a successful businessman, and basically streamlining government is a good thing. Again, I think it's good for him to make recommendations of where we should be cutting, but ultimately Congress has the power of the purse, and Congress is the one that needs to zero out these programs."
"I think in many cases the Trump administration is showcasing why they're misallocating of dollars, and I think that builds a case for it."
Short warned GOP lawmakers that a Democratic president might propose similar unilateral changes to the government in the future if they did not reclaim their authority.
"But again, if you take the next step and say that you can unilaterally do this, then you've got to live with the consequences," Short said. "When a Democratic president unilaterally gets rid of Republican programs or conservative programs that we like, like border patrol ...
"I mean, I think that in many cases, conservatives and Republicans have gone along with abandoning the rule of law and order, and I think that that is a concern, and so certainly we should be respecting the decisions of judges. I think, frankly, as President Trump said yesterday, you know, we can always appeal, but I don't think that means you can unilaterally decide which cases or decisions you accept or reject."
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