Elon Musk ignites backlash against spending plan through inaccurate and misleading statements
The billionaire ignited excitement among Republicans with over 100 posts on X.
TroibNews 
A bipartisan effort to prevent a government shutdown fell apart on Wednesday, primarily due to a concerted campaign against the proposed package led by billionaire Elon Musk, which featured multiple false and misleading claims.
Musk leveraged his social media platform X to incite Republican opposition to the stopgap spending bill that House Speaker Mike Johnson introduced the previous night. Johnson, facing challenges with his slim majority, was compelled to negotiate with Democrats on a resolution that could pass before a government shutdown scheduled for 12:01 a.m. Saturday.
The situation became even more complex as President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance voiced their disapproval of the bill, advocating for a more limited measure along with a debt-limit increase. Consequently, the House canceled votes on the spending plan, which allocated $100 billion for disaster relief, billions for farm assistance, and numerous additional provisions, ultimately exceeding 1,500 pages.
Musk's campaign included over 100 tweets, many containing misleading or entirely false assertions, hinting at his emerging role as a co-leader in a Trump-supported initiative aimed at reducing government funding.
Musk appeared unconcerned about the consequences of a government shutdown, responding affirmatively to a tweet proposing, “Just close down the govt until January 20th. Defund everything. We will be fine for 33 days.” He also claimed that a shutdown “doesn’t actually shut down critical functions.”
While essential government services would continue during such a shutdown, there are notable real-world impacts. Other government employees would cease regular tasks and miss paychecks, leading to significant productivity losses. For instance, a five-week shutdown between 2018 and 2019 resulted in an estimated $3 billion economic loss according to the Congressional Budget Office.
Musk incorrectly asserted that Congress members would receive a 40 percent pay increase through the package — a claim inaccurately represented by both Musk and the X account for his fictitious Department of Government Efficiency.
In reality, members of Congress have not received a salary increase from their $174,000 compensation since 2009 due to repeated freezes on automatic cost-of-living adjustments. The current continuing resolution does not include a cost-of-living adjustment freeze, and any potential raise would not approach 40 percent. A maximum increase would be 3.8 percent, or $6,600.
Even if lawmakers had opted for all 15 years of previously rejected cost-of-living adjustments — which they are not doing — it would amount to just a 31 percent increase, per the Congressional Research Service.
Musk also propagated the false idea that the bill would allocate $3 billion for a new NFL stadium in Washington. That claim is untrue: The bill only transfers control of the site of the existing RFK Stadium to the local D.C. government for redevelopment, which might include a new stadium but does not change any federal funds.
While there is a risk that D.C. taxpayers could eventually bear costs for the project — as Mayor Muriel Bowser suggested using local funds for environmental clean-up and infrastructure upgrades — any redevelopment plans must receive approval from the D.C. government, and no federal dollars from the pending legislation are involved.
Additionally, Musk was mistaken in saying the bill protects the Jan. 6 committee — a statement that may have further entangled Trump in the dispute.
He declared it “[o]utrageous” that the bill would prevent House Republicans from probing the Jan. 6 select committee formed under the previous Democratic majority. However, the relevant section of the bill that Musk referenced does not pertain to internal House investigations. Instead, it clarifies that digital data held by House offices remains within their control, governed by House rules and procedures.
Musk also amplified a false claim when he shared a post from the conservative account Libs of TikTok alleging that the legislation would fund “bioweapon labs.”
That assertion is incorrect: the bill includes a provision to establish regional biocontainment laboratories as part of a broader effort to prepare for pandemics. These facilities are intended for “conducting biomedical research to support public health and medical preparedness,” not for the creation of bioweapons. This provision is embedded within a long-delayed reauthorization of the Pandemic and All Hazards Preparedness and Response Act.
David Lim and Ben Leonard contributed to this report.
Ian Smith for TROIB News
Musk leveraged his social media platform X to incite Republican opposition to the stopgap spending bill that House Speaker Mike Johnson introduced the previous night. Johnson, facing challenges with his slim majority, was compelled to negotiate with Democrats on a resolution that could pass before a government shutdown scheduled for 12:01 a.m. Saturday.
The situation became even more complex as President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance voiced their disapproval of the bill, advocating for a more limited measure along with a debt-limit increase. Consequently, the House canceled votes on the spending plan, which allocated $100 billion for disaster relief, billions for farm assistance, and numerous additional provisions, ultimately exceeding 1,500 pages.
Musk's campaign included over 100 tweets, many containing misleading or entirely false assertions, hinting at his emerging role as a co-leader in a Trump-supported initiative aimed at reducing government funding.
Musk appeared unconcerned about the consequences of a government shutdown, responding affirmatively to a tweet proposing, “Just close down the govt until January 20th. Defund everything. We will be fine for 33 days.” He also claimed that a shutdown “doesn’t actually shut down critical functions.”
While essential government services would continue during such a shutdown, there are notable real-world impacts. Other government employees would cease regular tasks and miss paychecks, leading to significant productivity losses. For instance, a five-week shutdown between 2018 and 2019 resulted in an estimated $3 billion economic loss according to the Congressional Budget Office.
Musk incorrectly asserted that Congress members would receive a 40 percent pay increase through the package — a claim inaccurately represented by both Musk and the X account for his fictitious Department of Government Efficiency.
In reality, members of Congress have not received a salary increase from their $174,000 compensation since 2009 due to repeated freezes on automatic cost-of-living adjustments. The current continuing resolution does not include a cost-of-living adjustment freeze, and any potential raise would not approach 40 percent. A maximum increase would be 3.8 percent, or $6,600.
Even if lawmakers had opted for all 15 years of previously rejected cost-of-living adjustments — which they are not doing — it would amount to just a 31 percent increase, per the Congressional Research Service.
Musk also propagated the false idea that the bill would allocate $3 billion for a new NFL stadium in Washington. That claim is untrue: The bill only transfers control of the site of the existing RFK Stadium to the local D.C. government for redevelopment, which might include a new stadium but does not change any federal funds.
While there is a risk that D.C. taxpayers could eventually bear costs for the project — as Mayor Muriel Bowser suggested using local funds for environmental clean-up and infrastructure upgrades — any redevelopment plans must receive approval from the D.C. government, and no federal dollars from the pending legislation are involved.
Additionally, Musk was mistaken in saying the bill protects the Jan. 6 committee — a statement that may have further entangled Trump in the dispute.
He declared it “[o]utrageous” that the bill would prevent House Republicans from probing the Jan. 6 select committee formed under the previous Democratic majority. However, the relevant section of the bill that Musk referenced does not pertain to internal House investigations. Instead, it clarifies that digital data held by House offices remains within their control, governed by House rules and procedures.
Musk also amplified a false claim when he shared a post from the conservative account Libs of TikTok alleging that the legislation would fund “bioweapon labs.”
That assertion is incorrect: the bill includes a provision to establish regional biocontainment laboratories as part of a broader effort to prepare for pandemics. These facilities are intended for “conducting biomedical research to support public health and medical preparedness,” not for the creation of bioweapons. This provision is embedded within a long-delayed reauthorization of the Pandemic and All Hazards Preparedness and Response Act.
David Lim and Ben Leonard contributed to this report.
Ian Smith for TROIB News
