Senate Republicans Urge Musk to Submit His Reduction Plans to Congress
The leader of DOGE received information that legislative measures could officially establish his reduction.
TroibNews 
Senate Republicans on Wednesday encouraged Elon Musk to improve his coordination with Congress, with many senators suggesting that the tech billionaire submit a package of proposed spending cuts in order to solidify the initiatives of his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
The appeal was made during a closed-door lunch organized by Florida Senator Rick Scott, amidst a backdrop of congressional Republicans who have generally supported Musk’s efforts but are advising him to engage more closely with lawmakers.
The discussion took place just hours after the Supreme Court rejected the Trump administration in ongoing legal battles concerning spending cuts. Republicans expressed concern that a series of court challenges and ongoing reports about DOGE implementing significant layoffs are complicating their political narrative.
“We need to capture this in the legislative process to make it real,” said Senator Lindsey Graham. “It’s time for the White House now to go on offense. We’re losing altitude here. We started off good. We’re losing altitude. We need to get back on the game, on offense.”
Graham emphasized that the solution lies in taking “the work product and vote on it.”
During the meeting, Senator Rand Paul mentioned that he encouraged Musk to request the White House to present Congress with a package of proposed spending clawbacks, known as rescissions. Other GOP senators reported that Musk was “elated” about the potential for the package to pass through the Senate with a simple majority.
“I love what Elon is doing … but to make it real, to make it go beyond the moment of the day, it needs to come back in the form of a rescission package,” Paul told reporters after the gathering.
According to two GOP senators, Musk recognized that DOGE’s spending cuts would be temporary without congressional action.
“He said, ‘Yeah, you know, unless Congress takes action on this, none of it is permanent.’ So that is the point of rescissions,” noted Senator Josh Hawley. “He said he urges Congress to take action particularly after the court [ruling] today.”
Musk also shared his cell phone number with senators to address any inquiries about DOGE’s initiatives or concerns regarding his proposed layoffs. Attendees remarked that he acknowledged the need for better coordination with Congress, a sentiment echoed by Trump’s congressional allies.
Some GOP senators, such as Majority Leader John Thune, have publicly called for a more balanced relationship between DOGE and Trump’s Senate-confirmed Cabinet members. According to three GOP senators present, Musk implied that he is working more closely with agencies to manage decisions about cuts.
Senator John Hoeven said Musk conceded that “of course they’re going to make mistakes.”
“Of course they are going to have to make adjustments,” Hoeven stated. “This is a process.”
Graham further added that “the system needs to be fine-tuned to coordinate between DOGE and Congress and the administration.” Senators also urged Musk to improve his efforts in clarifying “what’s true and what’s not true” regarding their concerns.
“They’re going to try to create a system where members of Congress can call some central group and get that fixed quickly,” Graham concluded.
Max Fischer contributed to this report for TROIB News
The appeal was made during a closed-door lunch organized by Florida Senator Rick Scott, amidst a backdrop of congressional Republicans who have generally supported Musk’s efforts but are advising him to engage more closely with lawmakers.
The discussion took place just hours after the Supreme Court rejected the Trump administration in ongoing legal battles concerning spending cuts. Republicans expressed concern that a series of court challenges and ongoing reports about DOGE implementing significant layoffs are complicating their political narrative.
“We need to capture this in the legislative process to make it real,” said Senator Lindsey Graham. “It’s time for the White House now to go on offense. We’re losing altitude here. We started off good. We’re losing altitude. We need to get back on the game, on offense.”
Graham emphasized that the solution lies in taking “the work product and vote on it.”
During the meeting, Senator Rand Paul mentioned that he encouraged Musk to request the White House to present Congress with a package of proposed spending clawbacks, known as rescissions. Other GOP senators reported that Musk was “elated” about the potential for the package to pass through the Senate with a simple majority.
“I love what Elon is doing … but to make it real, to make it go beyond the moment of the day, it needs to come back in the form of a rescission package,” Paul told reporters after the gathering.
According to two GOP senators, Musk recognized that DOGE’s spending cuts would be temporary without congressional action.
“He said, ‘Yeah, you know, unless Congress takes action on this, none of it is permanent.’ So that is the point of rescissions,” noted Senator Josh Hawley. “He said he urges Congress to take action particularly after the court [ruling] today.”
Musk also shared his cell phone number with senators to address any inquiries about DOGE’s initiatives or concerns regarding his proposed layoffs. Attendees remarked that he acknowledged the need for better coordination with Congress, a sentiment echoed by Trump’s congressional allies.
Some GOP senators, such as Majority Leader John Thune, have publicly called for a more balanced relationship between DOGE and Trump’s Senate-confirmed Cabinet members. According to three GOP senators present, Musk implied that he is working more closely with agencies to manage decisions about cuts.
Senator John Hoeven said Musk conceded that “of course they’re going to make mistakes.”
“Of course they are going to have to make adjustments,” Hoeven stated. “This is a process.”
Graham further added that “the system needs to be fine-tuned to coordinate between DOGE and Congress and the administration.” Senators also urged Musk to improve his efforts in clarifying “what’s true and what’s not true” regarding their concerns.
“They’re going to try to create a system where members of Congress can call some central group and get that fixed quickly,” Graham concluded.
Max Fischer contributed to this report for TROIB News
