Tesla CEO Elon Musk has raised concerns about US President Donald Trump’s tax and spending cuts package and said he is “disappointed” to see the massive spending on the domestic policy bill.
The billionaire, who recently stepped back from running the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), made the remark during an interview with CBS News.
“I was disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly, which increases the budget deficit, not just decreases it, and undermines the work that the DOGE team is doing,” Musk told CBS News.
“I think a bill can be big or it can be beautiful, but I don’t know if it can be both,” Musk said, adding that it is his personal opinion.
Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” features trillions in tax cuts, increased funding for the US military and border security, and new work requirements for Medicaid — while diverting spending from federal health, nutrition, and energy programmes to bolster national security.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that the bill would increase the deficit by $3.8 trillion in the next decade.
The bill narrowly passed the House last week and now heads to the Senate, where it will likely face many changes.
Musk has stepped away from full-time government work to focus on his companies, including SpaceX and Tesla, which have struggled as a result of his alliance with the Trump administration.
In a separate interview, Musk, while responding to a question on whether his focus on politics has hurt SpaceX, said: “I think I probably did spend a bit too much time on politics, it’s less than people would think, because the media is going to over-represent any political stuff, because political bones of contention get a lot of traction in the media.”
