WASHINGTON — Elon Musk’s dumb for a smart guy — at least according to Republicans questioning why the man promising to save the government trillions is on the glide path to costing it billions.
“You can't shut government down. It costs money to shut the government down,” Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) told Raw Story while hopping a Senate elevator Wednesday evening.
“It even costs money this week to study what you’re gonna do if you shut the government down,” Grassley. 91, said. “And then it costs money to open up the government.”
Some Republicans on Capitol Hill fear Trump’s now following Musk’s lead — a move that has many, from party leaders to the rank-and-file, flustered.
Tweeting is a lot different than legislating
After earning the infamous title of least productive Congress in the modern era, this session seems to be closing on the legislative rails as the nation careens towards an economy-contracting, tweet-induced government shutdown.
Frustration with Speaker Mike Johnson has been building in the GOP ranks, and Musk is accused of now providing cover for a mini-revolt. Freedom Caucus members were up in arms over days-long delays in publishing the 1,500+ page bill, which only came out late Tuesday — though that’s normal end-of-year antics.
But this holiday season, Congress has suddenly found itself grounded after Musk tweeted his support for shutting down the government, which would scrap disaster aid — $100 billion spread from Asheville to Alaska — and canceling billions in aid and props for farmers.
ALSO READ: It’s time to decimate the Republicans’ standing with the public — and the press
Musk labeled the measure — one that’s almost an annual routine this time of year in contemporary, gridlocked Washington — “criminal.” Trump agreed.
With a few flicks of their thumbs, the duo derailed the carefully negotiated, broadly supported government funding measure. That’s left Johnson and leaders across the Capitol scrambling.
But Musk wants to go even further.
“No bills should be passed Congress until Jan 20,” Musk tweeted.
Besides being an unconstitutional demand, many Republicans are now starting to see the billionaire CEO as an impediment to the very MAGA agenda they signed up for.
“Do you feel like Elon Musk — and the twittersphere — is maybe going to portend bad things for the next four years?” Raw Story asked outside the Capitol Wednesday evening.
“Particularly when you have a couple hundred million followers, [Tweeting] is different than legislating,” Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) told Raw Story. “A government shutdown right before Christmas, a spending bill that doesn't include relief for the victims of massive hurricanes where entire cities are wiped out, that's pretty hard to explain to your neighbors.”
Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy are promising to upend business as usual in Washington, including their hopes of firing or pushing out tens of thousands of federal workers.
Their new Department of Government Efficiency — or DOGE — may be a part of Trump’s transition back into the White House, but DOGE isn’t a government agency.
Don’t tell that to federal workers — most of whom would be furloughed starting at midnight Friday if the shutdown happens — let alone the millions of veterans, seniors, students and everyone in between who will be impacted by the budget slashing they’re promising.
“Government's a service to the people. You can't serve the people [shut down],” Grassley said. “So I just don't want the government to shut down.”
Grassley may be the president pro tempore of the United States Senate — the third in line for the presidency — but he’s no Musk.
“Tons of misinformation”
But Elon Musk stacks the deck daily on his own social media platform, according to critics. And, like Trump, he’s almost able to transform rhetoric into reality.
Take the 3.8% salary increase the government funding bill includes for lawmakers themselves.
The official DOGE X account and Musk himself falsely inflate that pay raise to 40%.
Democrats question Musk’s increasingly incendiary rhetoric, even as they question their Republican counterparts for breaking under the digital peer pressure.
“Tons of misinformation, in terms of how they've been portraying it,” Sen. Andy Kim (D-NJ) told Raw Story while entering the Capitol. “It just kind of shows what happens, like, when things get litigated online so quickly, right?”
Disinformation aside, Trump followed Musk’s lead. The dominos fell and Johnson backpedaled on a bipartisan measure just two days before government funding runs out.
Today’s Republicans — at least those left standing — don’t dare cross the newly empowered former and incoming president.
But Wednesday’s quixotic social media policymaking has many in the GOP worried about what’s to come, especially if Musk maintains his role as the unofficial tweeter-in-chief.
“Whose fault is it?” Raw Story asked. “Does this one come from Mar-a-Lago?”
“Well, the most recent stunt did, of course,” Cramer replied shortly after Musk killed the bipartisan government funding bill. “But what led to that? I don't know if you call it bad negotiating.”
While sympathetic to his plight, Cramer says Johnson is stuck between a rock aa lot of rock-wielding House Republicans.
“I don't want to dump on him, because the House is full of people who put a gun to his head and threatened to not support him for speaker, and they have the ability to make that determination. He's in a tough spot,” Cramer said. “But at some point, even if it's going to cost you your leadership position, people do look to leaders to lead.”
“So, the Art of the Deal, you want to do the opposite of this?” Raw Story asked.
“It's the opposite of the Art of the Deal, for sure,” Cramer said.
Cramer has his own complaints with the misinformation flowing out of Mar-a-Lago, especially Trump’s last-minute demand that this end of year spending bill include a hike of the nation’s debt ceiling, which is months away from needing to be raised.
“There's a complete misunderstanding about the debt ceiling. I know Donald Trump's frustrated by it, I am as well, and if we could do something more permanent, I'd be all for it,” Cramer said. “This moment is not a good time, because we don't have the time to negotiate possible outcomes, possible offsets, possible new systems or processes that actually get to the root of the problem. We can't do it on the spur of the moment right before Christmas.”
Musk and the digital army at his algorithmic disposal are threatening to primary any Republicans who don’t get in line. This is about more than Johnson, at least to old-school lawmakers who argue Congress itself is being tested.
“They have to be able to function”
Retiring Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD), paused as he was getting in his car Wednesday night.
“They gotta decide whether they're a legislature or whether they’re a part of the Trump team. Last time I checked we’re an independent branch,” the 81-year-old told Raw Story. “It will be a real test as to the strength of the legislative branch of government.”
“They've outsourced their negotiating to Elon Musk without a plan,” Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) complained to Raw Story. “They have to be able to function.”