As one of President-elect Donald Trump’s closest and most influential advisors, Elon Musk isn’t waiting for the inauguration to flex the new administration’s political muscle.
U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman couldn’t save an explosive Continuing Resolution (CR) proposal from President-elect Donald Trump and Elon Musk to keep the government running Thursday night. The bill failed the House vote 235-174, including 38 Republicans among the majority that voted against it.
Congress will have until the end of Friday night to avoid a government shutdown before funding lapses.
On Thursday, Musk and his Republican allies offered a highly reduced 116-page version of the original 1,500-plus-page plan that had been proposed, which included a health care-related package and an extension of the Farm Bill for one year.
As one of Trump’s closest and most influential advisors and allies, Musk isn’t waiting for the inauguration to flex the new administration’s political muscle. He preceded Thursday’s rewrite of the CR with a series of posts to X that sent Congress members on both sides of the aisle scrambling.
The Musk measure omitted an array of policy changes that Democrats wanted.
Trump described their plan B effort on social media as “a very good deal for the American people.”
“The newly agreed to American Relief Act of 2024 will keep the government open, fund our great farmers and others, and provide relief for those severely impacted by the devastating hurricanes,” Trump posted on his social media platform Truth Social.
The bill would have extended government funding at current levels through March and provided $100 billion in disaster aid and $10 billion in direct payments to farmers.
The bill failed by a large margin to receive the two-thirds majority it needed to pass.
‘Wasteful’
U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman said she voted to support it in a post on X (formerly Twitter) Thursday night.
“I spoke with President Trump about how this bill provides the Republican trifecta with a fresh start in 2025 to deliver for the American People,” she said. “I voted to remove wasteful Democrat provisions, raises the debt ceiling, and bring over $100 million in relief for Wyoming agriculture.”
Hageman told Cowboy State Daily earlier in the day she voted against the earlier budget compromise, which she viewed as “a boondoggle.”
“There was not a bloated government program Democrats missed in crafting that legislation,” she said. “I am working with my conservative colleagues to find a way forward. The process is broken, and our leaders need to do better.”
Representatives for Sens. John Barrasso and Lummis told Cowboy State Daily they’re waiting to see what version of the CR the House passes before they comment on it.
Unprecedented And ‘Fascinating’
Jackson resident Liz Brimmer, who was former Wyoming Sen. Craig Thomas’ chief of staff, said she’s never seen anything like this before on Capitol Hill and expects the next day-and-a-half to be “fascinating.”
“There’s nothing like a threat of a consequence (deadline) to organize one’s mind,” she said. “The next 28 hours will potentially be the biggest Friday on Capitol Hill in anybody’s memory.”
A government shutdown happened during Trump’s first presidency, lasting 34 days from late 2018 to early 2019, the longest in U.S. history.
“It happens more than you think, but never really ends well,” said Jackson resident Rob Wallace, former assistant secretary of the Interior for Fish, Wildlife and Parks, under Trump.
Wallace said a government shutdown is never a good look for either party and he expects Congress to come up with a solution before the deadline hits.
“I don’t think anyone wants to own being responsible for closing the government before Christmas,” he said.
Many Wyoming residents would likely be furloughed in the event of a government shutdown, just as they were in 2018. The 2018 shutdown was different, however, as it only sidelined 800,000 of the federal government’s 2.1 million employees.
The shutdown looming now would shutdown the entire government,
During a government shutdown, critical service workers like air traffic controllers and airport security workers still work, as well as a small smattering of high-level federal employees. But large numbers of postal workers and Transportation Security Administration employees could be forced to work without pay.
Already Killed
The new spending bill failed with both hardline conservatives and Democrats opposing the measure that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries had said he was a “hell no” on.
Musk blamed Jeffries for the measure not passing, mentioning how only two Democrats voted in support of it.
But other Republicans like Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, also voted against it, calling it “a watered-down version of the same crappy bill people were mad about yesterday,” while speaking on the “Sean Hannity Show.”
The proposal would have tied an extension of government funding to a two-year suspension of the federal debt limit, which would have increased by about $5 trillion. Conservatives didn’t support this increase and Democrats were still furious over getting their original compromise plan shut down.
Until the new Senate takes over in January, Democrats still hold a majority in the chamber.
Musk’s Influence
A bipartisan compromise had been reached between Democrats and Republicans before Musk and Trump torpedoed it.
Musk spent most of the day Thursday trashing the measure on social media and threatening the political future of any Republican who dared to support it.
Many Democrats blasted Musk, who they largely blamed for killing the compromise.
U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Maryland, who served on the United States House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack with former Wyoming Congresswoman Liz Cheney, expressed frustration to reporters about Musk’s influence in the negotiations that have been weeks in the making.
“Everybody agreed and then it was blown up by Elon Musk, who has become the fourth branch of government,” Raskin said. “That’s just an intolerable way of proceeding under representative democracy.”
Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Connecticut, expressed a similar sentiment and referred to him as “President Musk.”
“What does he know about what people go through when the government shuts down?” she questioned.
Wallace has been spending time on Capitol Hill lately and said the mood completely depends on what side of the aisle you’re on.
“If you’re a Republican, you’re pretty excited to have control of the presidency and both chambers of Congress,” he said. “But if you’re a Democrat, you’re already looking at the next elections in two years.”
President Joe Biden has been surprisingly quiet throughout the budget negotiations.
“I haven’t gotten any message from President Biden, or heard of anything that he’s saying,” Rep. Mark Takano, D-California, told Politico. “Elon’s the shot-caller, it’s pretty clear to me.”
Leo Wolfson can be reached at leo@cowboystatedaily.com.
