'Big beautiful bill' vs 'disgusting abomination': White House reacts to Elon Musk's criticism of tax bill; Democrats back Tesla boss

After tech giant Elon Musk criticized the US administration's signature budget bill, the White House said that his opinion would not change President Donald Trump's views about it. During the press briefing on Tuesday, Trump's Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that President Trump maintains that this bill is "big, beautiful" despite concerns raised by Musk.

“The president already knows where Elon Musk stood on this bill, it doesn’t change his opinion. This is one big, beautiful bill, and he’s sticking to it,” she said.

Days after his exit from the White House, Tesla boss Elon Musk launched a scathing attack on a major Trump-backed spending bill, calling it a “disgusting abomination” in a series of posts on X. The bill was passed the House in May with backing from nearly all Republican lawmakers. Musk, the former DOGE chief, warned that the bill would increase the country’s already growing debt burden.

“I’m sorry, but I just can’t stand it anymore. This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination. Shame on those who voted for it: you know you did wrong. You know it,” Musk wrote.

Musk gets Democrats and hard-right Republican support

Musk's criticism of Trump's bill has earned him support from the Democrats. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries at a press conference said that he is happy that he and Musk agree on this thing.

"Breaking news. Elon Musk and I agree with each other," Jeffries said. "Every single Republican who voted for the One Big Ugly Bill should be ashamed of themselves," he added.

Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee spokesperson Viet Shelton said, "We're happy to see that Elon agrees with us that every Republican who voted for the tax scam should lose their job."

Several Republicans also rejoiced at Musk’s comments. The two hard-right House Republicans who voted against the bill quickly praised Musk for speaking out. Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio) called Musk’s post “The Big Beautiful Tweet,” while Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) responded, “He’s right.” Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) who has reiterated his opposition to the bill, said to reporters on Tuesday, “Congress has hollowed out America’s middle class through reckless deficit spending and the inflation it causes.” He added that Musk “has some of the same skepticism” as him that the bill is “just not conservative.”