The big question in recent weeks: Why are House Republicans hesitating to codify the waste and fraud identified by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) into law?
Musk’s CBS News interview on Tuesday, where he called the “Big, Beautiful Bill” (BBB) a “disappointment,” appears to have kicked off a broader information campaign aimed at pressuring the White House to push House Republicans toward formally codifying some DOGE-related spending cuts.
"I think a bill can be big or it could be beautiful. But I don't know if it could be both."
Tech billionaire Elon Musk tells CBS Sunday Morning's @Pogue he was "disappointed" to see the Trump-backed "big beautiful" spending bill, which passed in the House last week.
Musk said… pic.twitter.com/LUcuTaNYrs
— CBS Sunday Morning
(@CBSSunday) May 28, 2025
By Wednesday afternoon, Politico reported, citing two anonymous Republican sources, that the White House plans to send a rescissions bill (appropriations bill) to Congress next week to formally propose the spending cuts.
The package is expected to target funding for NPR, PBS, and certain foreign aid agencies previously reduced under President Trump.
Here’s more from the report:
The package set to land on Capitol Hill is expected to reflect only a fraction of the DOGE cuts, which have already fallen far short of Musk’s multi-trillion-dollar aspirations. The two Republicans said it will target NPR and PBS, as well as foreign aid agencies that have already been gutted by President Donald Trump’s administration.
House Speaker Mike Johnson stated that the House is “eager and ready” to act on the DOGE findings, while Senate Majority Leader John Thune and others voiced frustration over the delay.
A growing online campaign, led by supporters of Musk, including Sen. Mike Lee and Gov. Ron DeSantis, is pressuring the administration to codify more of the DOGE cuts.
Sen. Ron Johnson blasted House Republicans.
NOW: Sen. Ron Johnson blasts House Republicans for failing to codify DOGE spending cuts into law.
No one else is asking the question—but @SenRonJohnson is sounding the alarm.
“I would ask the question: where are the rescission packages so we can codify the DOGE savings?”
“I’m… pic.twitter.com/ToXeRaH1zC
— The Vigilant Fox
(@VigilantFox) May 28, 2025
However, the path forward remains uncertain due to the opposition of 26 Senate Republicans.
An online pressure campaign aimed at “codifying” the DOGE cuts is taking shape. The number of X posts mentioning “codifying” has jumped from around 1,000 five days ago to 25,000 on Tuesday.
All DOGE cuts must be codified.
Elon Musk had ambitious plans when he took the helm of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), famously pledging to slash at least $1 trillion in government waste. Back in February, we noted that while Musk’s mission in Washington, DC, was admirable, the ultimate cost savings would be decided by Congress.
Fast forward to Tuesday, Musk appeared in a CBS News interview where he voiced his disappointment, citing frustration that despite DOGE’s efforts to root out waste and fraud across federal agencies, President Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” (BBB) comes with an alarmingly high price tag.
“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 said.
He added, “I think a bill can be big or it can be beautiful … but I don’t know if it can be both. My personal opinion.”
Last week, the Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives narrowly passed the BBB that fulfills much of Trump’s ‘America First’ agenda, such as delivering new tax breaks on tips and car loans and boosting spending on the military and hemispheric defense.
As we’ve previously explained, BBB will “massively” increase deficits by $3.8 trillion over ten years. In part because new borrowing is front-loaded and offsets are back-loaded, the bill would add massively to near-term deficits.
The prospect of a ballooning national debt—despite DOGE’s reported $175 billion in federal waste and fraud reductions—has put Musk at odds with Trump’s BBB and, more notably, with Congress. His frustration appears primarily directed at lawmakers, whom he sees as unwilling to implement the sweeping fiscal cuts needed to course-correct that nation to avert a debt crisis.
We predicted this clash between Musk and Congress would unfold as far back as early February:
“What Musk is doing in trying to streamline the govt is admirable but ultimately it will be Congress that decides the endgame. And there things are as status quo as always.”
Musk is not alone. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) has stated, “We’re not rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic tonight. We’re putting coal in the boiler and setting a course for the iceberg.”
There is brewing dissent among other Republican senators who follow Musk…
BREAKING: Just moments ago, Sen. Rick Scott said he's a NO on the One Big Beautiful Bill in its current form. He's demanding more spending cuts and setting America on the path to a balanced budget.
“Oh absolutely I’d vote no. If they brought it to the floor right now there’s… pic.twitter.com/a73QWl2IHb
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) May 27, 2025
Musk must be furious with Congress.
Recall what he said last week, “The ability of Doge to operate is a function of whether the government, and this includes the Congress, is willing to take our advice.”
