Elon Musk has left the White House — but he can’t seem to quit politics.
Whether the tech titan holds the same sway as a private citizen, however, remains to be seen. His rant against the “massive, outrageous, pork-filled” reconciliation bill, which he called a “disgusting abomination,” raised eyebrows around town Tuesday. But several lobbyists told NOTUS they don’t think it will derail the process.
“He left, and everyone knows it. So now he’s a private citizen with thoughts,” one Republican lobbyist told NOTUS. “Welcome to the world, Elon.”
“If Trump is for the bill, I don’t think it changes the dynamics a ton,” the lobbyist added.
But Musk isn’t just any private citizen. He’s the richest man in the world and the owner of X, with more than 220 million followers. His political star skyrocketed during the 2024 election cycle, during which he dropped more than a quarter of a billion dollars to help elect President Donald Trump and other Republicans.
The lobbyist called it “literally suicidal” to comment on the record about the first major rift that has emerged between Musk and President Donald Trump, who called the bill a “big WINNER” Tuesday morning.
“Getting in the middle of two fucking Goliath sounds like fucking hell. Elon controls X, which absolutely influences the daily understanding of American politics. Trump is the president, he daily changes the direction of how Americans understand politics.”
Trump appointed Musk leader of the cost-cutting Department of Government Efficiency, a role he exited last week when his special government employee status expired. Musk fell far short of his goal to cut $1 trillion in “waste, fraud and abuse” from the federal budget, and he criticized the cost of the bill.
While Musk recently suggested he was getting out of the political spending game, he threatened to “fire all politicians who betrayed the American people.”
“Trouble in paradise,” a Democratic lobbyist texted NOTUS.
Trump has not taken to social media to blast the billionaire for opposing his “big, beautiful” bill, as he did to Sen. Rand Paul in his most recent post on Truth Social.
Rep. Chip Roy, who criticized the cost of the bill but ultimately voted for it, called Musk’s post “an important part of the narrative.”
But he also said that “saying that two weeks ago would have been helpful,” before the House passed the bill and when Musk was still at the White House.
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Taylor Giorno is a reporter at NOTUS. Daniella Diaz, a reporter at NOTUS, contributed.