Phoenix Mercury guard Natasha Cloud took a shot at Elon Musk and other billionaires in posts on social media on Sunday after the passage of a stopgap funding bill to prevent a government shutdown.
Musk and President-elect Donald Trump led the conservative rebellion against the initial plan to avert a partial shutdown, a bipartisan deal that came from negotiations between the top two Democrats and Republicans in both congressional chambers.
That bill, 1,547 pages, would have extended current government funding levels until March 14. However, GOP hardliners were angered by what they saw as unrelated measures attached to the bill, like a pay raise for congressional lawmakers, health care policy provisions and legislation aimed at revitalizing RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C.
It was scrapped as Trump and Musk threatened to force out of office any lawmaker who did not support pairing a CR with action on the debt limit.
It caused a huge controversy in the political arena hours before the House eventually passed the bill.
"So when y’all gone tell Elon to go back to Africa?" Cloud wrote on X.
"Im so glad ALL these billionaires have no idea how the 3 branches of government work….or how a bill gets passed into law. Shoutout to the 38 Republicans who shot the bill down in the House while being threatened & blackmailed."
All Democrats voted in favor of the bill, except Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, who voted "present."
Cloud has been outspoken about the U.S. in the past. After Trump won the election, she took a swipe at women who voted for the Republican candidate.
"The privilege of celebrating rn is exactly what’s wrong with us as people," she added. "I am truly worried about my fundamental human rights.
"Racism, misogyny, and hatred of women are so deeply rooted into everything that is America. Until we fix the roots…it will never grow."
Conservatives and allies of President-elect Trump are dismantling a narrative put forth by Democratic lawmakers such as Sen. Elizabeth Warren that Republicans blocked funding for childhood cancer research in the spending bill, pointing to a stand-alone bill that had languished in the Democratic-controlled Senate for months.
Congress passed a pared-down spending bill early Saturday morning as the government careened toward a prolonged shutdown. The bill’s passage followed tech billionaire Elon Musk and other Trump allies slamming a more than 1,500-page piece of legislation earlier last week as "outrageous" and "full of excessive spending, special interest giveaways and pork barrel politics," demanding lawmakers return to the negotiation table.
The Senate advanced a third version of a short-term funding bill on Saturday morning, following negotiations that whittled down the legislation to not include measures such as providing lawmakers a pay raise.
As negotiations were hashed out, Warren and other Democrats attempted to slam Republicans for allegedly blocking funding for childhood cancer research in the bill.
"We actually are now getting our first taste – this is it live and in living color – about what it means to have this DOGE," Warren said on CNN as the government prepared to shut down on Friday evening.
DOGE, the Department of Government Efficiency, is an upcoming presidential advisory committee that will be led by Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to cut excessive government spending and slash the size of the government under Trump’s second administration.
"Right out here, and what that's going to mean. And that's where Elon Musk's fingerprints are all over this. Because, for example, what this bill says is all, let's get rid of funding for research on pediatric cancer. Let's get rid of funding for research on early detection of cervical cancer and breast cancer. Let's get rid of funding for research on children with Down Syndrome and on sickle cell anemia. Let's get rid of those things so that we could make way for tax cuts for billionaires, that is Elon Musk's notion of efficiency," she continued.
While the Democratic Party’s war room published a press release declaring: "Trump and his MAGA minions in Congress have decided to threaten a government shutdown for his political gain – and now they’ve stooped as low as cutting child cancer research."
Other conservatives and Trump allies slammed the narrative that the GOP blocked funding for childhood cancer research, pointing to a stand-alone bill that passed in the Republican-led House in March, and had for months languished in the Democratic-led Senate.
"Elizabeth Warren repeats the lie that @elonmusk and Republicans blocked funding for child cancer research. A stand alone bill for child cancer research funding passed the Republican controlled House in March and got held up in the Democrat controlled Senate," popular conservative X account Libs of TikTok posted in response to Warren’s CNN interview.
"Democrats blocked funding for child cancer research."
The House passed a stand-alone bill on March 5, at a vote of 384-4, that allocated millions of dollars per year for pediatric research through 2028. The bill was delivered to the Senate on March 6, but Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., had not taken action on the legislation, sparking condemnation from conservatives months later that Democrats used the research funding as a "bargaining chip."
"Democrats are using children with cancer as political shields in the shutdown game to blame Republicans after using them as political shields to help defend all the slop Democrats wanted included in the bill. If this funding is so important, it can be passed on its own as a stand-alone bill. You know, like how the government is supposed to work, instead of cramming hundreds of useless proposals into the same bill as pediatric cancer research funding in a 1,500-page mess that no one actually reads so that you can attack anyone who doesn’t support the useless stuff by claiming they hate children with cancer," an op-ed published in the Washington Examiner outlined.
A review of the legislation shows that on Friday evening, the Senate passed the legislation by a voice vote, following condemnation targeting the GOP for allegedly blocking funding for the research.
The legislation extends $12.6 million a year in cancer research funding through 2031.
Fox News Digital reached out to Warren’s office for additional comment Sunday morning, but did not immediately receive a reply.
Senators voted to pass a new version of a stopgap spending bill early Saturday morning after the midnight deadline for a partial government shutdown came and went.
The Senate advanced the third version of a short-term spending bill by 85 to 11, and it will now head to President Biden's desk, who has already signaled that he will sign it.
An original agreement on a short-term spending bill was released earlier in the week, totaling 1,547-pages and including a number of policy provisions and disaster aid.
But soon after its release, billionaire Elon Musk and other conservative critics publicly blasted the measure, ultimately resulting in it being condemned by President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance.
"Republicans must GET SMART and TOUGH. If Democrats threaten to shut down the government unless we give them everything they want, then CALL THEIR BLUFF. It is Schumer and Biden who are holding up aid to our farmers and disaster relief," Trump and Vance said in a lengthy statement opposing the bill on Wednesday afternoon.
The initial spending measure would have extended government funding levels for fiscal year 2024 through March 14 and provide over $100 billion in disaster aid for those affected by storms Helene and Milton in the U.S. Southeast earlier this year. There was also a $10 billion provision for economic assistance to farmers in the bill.
Meanwhile, as of Thursday, the U.S. national debt was at $36,167,604,149,955.61 and was continuing to climb rapidly.
The size of the bill, along with several of its other provisions, including a cost of living raise for lawmakers, prompted the public reaction from Musk and others.
"Any member of the House or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending bill deserves to be voted out in 2 years!" he wrote on X.
After heading back to the drawing board, House Republicans emerged on Thursday with a new proposal. The revised measure would have extended current funding levels for three months and included a debt limit suspension for two years, per the request of Trump.
Additionally, it had economic relief for farmers and about $110 billion in disaster aid.
But the bill failed on the House floor Thursday night as Democrats united against it and a significant group of Republicans opted to oppose it as well.
"Old bill: $110BB in deficit spending (unpaid for), $0 increase in the national credit card. New bill: $110BB in deficit spending (unpaid for), $4 TRILLION+ debt ceiling increase with $0 in structural reforms for cuts. Time to read the bill: 1.5 hours. I will vote no," Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, wrote on X ahead of the vote.
Roy was one of 38 House Republicans that opposed the stopgap bill.
By Friday morning, there appeared to be no agreement between Democrats and Republicans in Congress to work together on a new bill. In fact, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray, D-Wash., said the government would go into a partial shutdown at midnight if Republicans did not return to the original stopgap bill.
"I'm ready to stay here through Christmas because we're not going to let Elon Musk run the government," Murray said in a statement.
Schumer said in remarks on the Senate floor that the original bill would pass in the House if Speaker Mike Johnson brought it to the floor for a vote.
The third measure, which ultimately passed the House and Senate, was similar to the one that failed the night prior. The bill included economic relief for farmers and disaster aid for those affected by recent storms. However, the final stopgap bill did not include a suspension of the debt ceiling, which Trump had requested himself.
The House passed the short-term spending bill with 366 yes votes, surpassing the necessary two-thirds.
A partial government shutdown began at 12:01 on Saturday morning after Congress failed to pass a stopgap spending measure before the deadline and send it to President Biden's desk.
However, the Senate is actively working through amendment votes and other considerations in order to send the measure to Biden. The stopgap bill is expected to be passed in the Senate in the coming hours.
As of Thursday, the U.S. national debt was at $36,167,604,149,955.61 and was continuing to climb rapidly.
During a partial government shutdown, federal agencies and non-essential services are stopped, but some functions that are considered "essential" will continue. Certain national security functions, such as border patrol, law enforcement and disaster response, will remain active during the shutdown.
However, because the Senate is expected to move the bill forward imminently, the disruption to government function will be minimal, if at all noticeable.
An original agreement on a short-term spending bill was released earlier in the week, totaling 1,547-pages and including a number of policy provisions and disaster aid.
But soon after its release, billionaire Elon Musk and other conservative critics publicly blasted the measure, ultimately resulting in it being condemned by President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance.
The initial spending measure would have extended government funding levels for fiscal year 2024 through March 14 and provide over $100 billion in disaster aid for those affected by storms Helene and Milton in the U.S. Southeast earlier this year. There was also a $10 billion provision for economic assistance to farmers in the bill.
The size of the bill, along with several of its other provisions, including a cost of living raise for lawmakers, prompted the public reaction from Musk and others.
After heading back to the drawing board, House Republicans emerged on Thursday with a new proposal. The revised measure would have extended current funding levels for three months and included a debt limit suspension for two years, per the request of Trump.
Additionally, it had economic relief for farmers and about $110 billion in disaster aid.
But the bill failed on the House floor Thursday night as Democrats united against it and a significant group of Republicans opted to oppose it as well.
By Friday morning, there appeared to be no agreement between Democrats and Republicans in Congress to work together on a new bill. In fact, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray, D-Wash., said the government would go into a partial shutdown at midnight if Republicans did not return to the original stopgap bill.
"I'm ready to stay here through Christmas because we're not going to let Elon Musk run the government," Murray said in a statement.
The House managed to pass a third version of the spending bill on Friday. It was similar to the second version, including both economic relief for farmers and disaster aid, but did not have the debt ceiling suspension that Trump had been adamant about.
The bill received broad bipartisan support in the House and the green light from Biden, as the White House said he'd support it. Even Schumer released a statement after the House's passage, saying he was "confident" it would pass the Senate.
Senate Democrats labeled billionaire Elon Musk "co-president" and "shadow speaker" among other titles as they reacted to the original stopgap spending deal's implosion on Wednesday after he and ultimately President-elect Trump came out against it.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said Musk "seems to be the guy in charge of the country now," reacting to his apparent ability to influence the bill's prompt failure despite it having been agreed upon by bipartisan leaders in Congress.
If a measure to provide funding for the government is not passed by Congress and signed by President Biden by midnight on Saturday morning, a partial government shutdown will go into effect.
As of Thursday, the U.S. national debt was at $36,167,604,149,955.61 and continues to climb rapidly.
After a 1,547-page short-term spending bill was debuted this week. Musk quickly took to X to trash it, pointing out various seemingly irrelevant provisions as well as its cost and length.
He was soon joined by other critics, and Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance issued their own statement opposing the bill.
This led to significant criticism from Democrats unhappy with Musk's apparent ability to influence Trump and the Republicans in Congress.
"He's the one who seems to be calling the shots," Warren told reporters.
"Elon Musk is the one evidently in charge of the Republican Party and has blown that deal up. So I don't know how the Republicans are planning to recover from that," she said.
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., suggested that Musk is "already the shadow speaker of the House," in a slight against House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.
"I think he's unelected, and he's created a whole lot of damage," said Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga.
He claimed Republicans in Congress were "busy listening to Co-President Musk and co-President Trump."
"I'm listening to the people of Georgia, especially the farmers who are struggling to get disaster relief. And, we need to make sure that we get that over the finish line," said Warnock.
Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., reiterated that Musk is not an elected official. "He doesn't have any official government job," he said.
"We had a deal with Republicans in the House and now, because of him, the president-elect is on the verge of people losing their jobs and not getting paid over the holidays," Kelly said of a potential partial shutdown if a bill is not passed by a deadline of midnight on Saturday morning.
Despite their Democratic colleagues' claims, Republicans pushed back on the idea that Trump was being influenced by Musk. Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., noted that there are "lots of people around President Trump," adding that he doesn't think Musk has control over what the president-elect does.
Musk was tapped by Trump, along with former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, to lead what is called the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a proposed advisory board tasked with eliminating government waste.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre volleyed away reporters’ questions on Friday about President Biden’s lack of public appearances amid the ongoing government funding fight as a partial shutdown looms.
Jean-Pierre refused to answer why the president has not spoken to the American public about his position, and she instead blamed Republicans, President-elect Trump, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and their "billionaire friends" like Elon Musk for the chaos on Capitol Hill.
"Why hasn’t President Biden said anything in the public about this? Don't the American people deserve to know why millions of federal workers could enter this holiday period without a paycheck?" Jean-Pierre was asked during her daily press briefing.
"All Americans need to know that Republicans are getting in the way here and they are the ones who have created this mess. That's the reality. That's the fact," she responded. "This is not the first time we've been here. And the president has had this approach before. He understands how Congress works. He's been around for some time. He understands what strategy works here to get this done."
Jean-Pierre said Friday that Biden has held phone calls with Democratic leaders in Congress — Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y. — but would not say if the president has spoken to the House speaker with regard to the ongoing discussions.
"He has been getting regular updates from his team. His team has been in touch with congressional members from both sides of the aisle," she said.
A streamlined version of a bill backed by Trump to avert a partial government shutdown failed to pass the House of Representatives on Thursday night.
The bill, which needed two-thirds of the House chamber to pass, failed by a vote of 174 to 235. The national debt has soared to over $36 trillion, and the national deficit is over $1.8 trillion.
Jean-Pierre said Republicans went back on their word and "blew up this deal."
"Republicans need to stop playing politics with a government shutdown. And they are doing the bidding. They're doing the bidding of their billionaire friends. That's what we're seeing at the expense of hard-working Americans," she said.
"There is a bipartisan agreement that Republicans tanked because of what they were directed to do by Elon Musk and President-elect Trump. That's what happened. That is the reality that we're in now."
Musk, an outspoken critic of government waste, has weighed in on the spending bill debate and led a conservative revolt against the first 1,547-page bill due to its bloated spending provisions, calling for lawmakers who supported the bill to lose their seats.
He supported the newer, slimmer version, which was ultimately rejected by House members.
Reporters tried several different ways to try and get Jean-Pierre to comment on the president’s role in the matter, but she continued to sidestep.
"The president is the President of the United States, and he is leading," she told a reporter, to which he responded: "To be clear, the strategy is he is leading by staying in the background?"
"The strategy is that Congress, Republicans in particular, need to do their jobs and get out of their own way and focus on the American people, not their billionaire friends. That is what needs to happen. And that's what the president wants to see," she replied.
Jean-Pierre also warned that a shutdown could disrupt the presidential transition process for the incoming administration.
"If there is a shutdown — and I don't want to get too much into hypotheticals — but this is the reality, transition activities will be restricted with limited exceptions, obviously, such as to prevent imminent threats to the safety of human life or the protection of property," she said.
Meanwhile, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., said Friday that Republicans have a "good plan" to avoid a partial government shutdown.
Rep. Stephanie Bice, R-Okla., added: "I think you come to an agreement, then you get together and sit down and figure out, you know, if we can get across the finish line. And that's probably what we're about to do now."
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton sounded off Thursday about Elon Musk’s influence over the spending drama on Capitol Hill.
"If you're just catching up: the Republican Party, taking orders from the world's richest man, is on course to shut down the government over the holidays, stopping paychecks for our troops and nutrition benefits for low-income families just in time for Christmas," the 2016 presidential candidate wrote on X.
Clinton, a former first lady and senator, was in Congress from 2001 to 2009.
Her comments came just as House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., released a new version of a continuing resolution, or CR, to keep the government open beyond a Friday night deadline.
Musk came out in strong opposition to the original spending deal Johnson negotiated with Democrats, threatening to back a primary challenge to any Republican who voted for it.
Without a passable deal to kick the government funding deadline to March and continue spending at 2024 levels, the government will go into partial shutdown at midnight Saturday.
But House Democrats are balking at the latest iteration of a spending plan. And with $36 trillion in debt and a $1.8 trillion deficit in 2024, some conservatives are against a CR, which punts the funding deadline to March and keeps spending at 2024 levels, entirely.
"The Musk-Johnson proposal is not serious, it's laughable. Extreme MAGA Republicans are driving us to a government shutdown," said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y.
Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., indicated Democratic leadership would whip their members to vote "no" on the deal.
Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., lamented that the last deal had been blown up by opposition from conservatives, with input from Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) leaders Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy.
"Everybody agreed," he said, "and then it was blown up by Elon Musk, who apparently has become the fourth branch of government. And that's just an intolerable way of proceeding.
"Democrats are going to try to figure out how we can salvage the public good as the wreckage that's just been pushed."
Chants of "hell no" could be heard inside the room where Democrats were meeting after the bill's text was released.
The latest continuing resolution would extend current government funding levels for three months and also suspend the debt limit for two years, something President-elect Trump has demanded.
It comes after the original 1,500-page CR drew opposition from the right due to policy and funding riders.
Some House Republicans are privately fuming after Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy got involved in congressional talks on government funding, leading the charge to tank a bipartisan deal.
Several GOP lawmakers granted anonymity to speak freely about a sensitive situation were either frustrated about the pair getting involved or believe they exacerbated long-standing weaknesses within the House Republican Conference.
"Musk and Vivek should not have jumped in at the 11th hour and should have handled it directly with the speaker. Folks on the same side shouldn’t act like these two," one House Republican said. "They’re more about the clicks and bright lights than getting the job done. I’ll have nothing to do with them after watching them publicly trash the speaker."
A second GOP lawmaker said, "If Elon and Vivek are freelancing and shooting off the hip without coordination with [President-elect Trump], they are getting dangerously close to undermining the actual 47th President of the United States."
A third lawmaker accused Ramaswamy of distorting facts.
"He didn't read the entire [continuing resolution] and the vast majority of what he was talking about is misinformation," they said.
Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., was gearing up to hold a vote on a bipartisan, 1,547-page deal to extend current government funding levels through March 14 – known as a continuing resolution (CR).
The goal was to give congressional negotiators more time to cobble together an agreement on how to fund the government for the remainder of fiscal year (FY) 2025, while also kicking the fight into a term where Republicans control the House, Senate and White House.
But GOP hardliners were furious about what they saw as unrelated measures and policy riders being added to the bill at the last minute.
In addition to averting a partial government shutdown through March 14, the bill also includes provisions on health care and ethanol fuel, plus more than $100 billion in disaster aid funding, measures to fund the rebuilding of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge and the first pay raise for lawmakers since 2009.
Musk and Ramaswamy soon joined the opposition, with Musk even threatening to back primary challengers to Republicans who supported the CR.
Less than 24 hours after the legislation was released, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., told reporters the bill was dead.
House GOP leaders have been working toward a plan B, but it's unclear they'll get much, if any, Democratic support.
A fourth House Republican who spoke with Fox News Digital said of Musk's involvement, "I think he influenced weak members who didn't have direction until he tweeted."
"He's just highlighting bad governance and indirectly a weak legislative branch," they said.
Trump, meanwhile, threatened to primary Republicans who supported a "clean" CR without an increase of the debt limit – which expires January 2025.
The issue threw a wrench into negotiations on Wednesday night, given the months-long and politically brutal talks that normally accompany a debt limit increase or suspension.
One Republican bristled at his threat: "Trump threatening to ‘primary’ us also reduces his standing with many of us. I don’t want anything to do with him."
Some House Republicans are privately fuming after Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy got involved in congressional talks on government funding, leading the charge to tank a bipartisan deal.
Several GOP lawmakers granted anonymity to speak freely about a sensitive situation were either frustrated about the pair getting involved or believe they exacerbated longstanding weaknesses within the House Republican Conference.
"Musk and Vivek should not have jumped in at the 11th hour and should have handled it directly with the speaker. Folks on the same side shouldn’t act like these two," one House Republican said. "They’re more about the clicks and bright lights than getting the job done. I’ll have nothing to do with them after watching them publicly trash the speaker."
A second GOP lawmaker said, "If Elon and Vivek are freelancing and shooting off the hip without coordination with [President-elect Trump], they are getting dangerously close to undermining the actual 47th President of the United States."
A third lawmaker accused Ramaswamy of distorting facts.
"He didn't read the entire [continuing resolution] and the vast majority of what he was talking about is misinformation," they said.
Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., was gearing up to hold a vote on a bipartisan, 1,547-page deal to extend current government funding levels through March 14 – known as a continuing resolution (CR).
The goal was to give congressional negotiators more time to cobble together an agreement on how to fund the government for the remainder of fiscal year (FY) 2025, while also kicking the fight into a term where Republicans control the House, Senate and White House.
But GOP hardliners were furious about what they saw as unrelated measures and policy riders being added to the bill at the last minute.
In addition to averting a partial government shutdown through March 14, the bill also includes provisions on health care and ethanol fuel, plus more than $100 billion in disaster aid funding and measures to fund the rebuilding of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge and the first pay raise for lawmakers since 2009.
Musk and Ramaswamy soon joined the opposition, with Musk even threatening to back primary challengers to Republicans who supported the CR.
Less than 24 hours after the legislation was released, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., told reporters the bill was dead.
House GOP leaders have been working toward a plan B, but it's unclear they'll get much, if any, Democratic support.
A fourth House Republican who spoke with Fox News Digital said of Musk's involvement, "I think he influenced weak members who didn't have direction until he tweeted."
"He's just highlighting bad governance and indirectly a weak legislative branch," they said.
Trump, meanwhile, threatened to primary Republicans who supported a "clean" CR without an increase of the debt limit – which expires January 2025.
The issue threw a wrench into negotiations on Wednesday night, given the months-long and politically brutal talks that normally accompany a debt limit increase or suspension.
One Republican bristled at his threat: "Trump threatening to ‘primary’ us also reduces his standing with many of us. I don’t want anything to do with him."
The chaotic collapse of the continuing resolution spending bill is putting House Speaker Mike Johnson’s, R-La., leadership under the spotlight and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., has floated the idea of replacing him with Elon Musk, President-elect Trump's pick to co-chair his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
Paul took to Musk’s X on Thursday morning to pitch the idea of the tech billionaire taking the House speaker’s gavel, noting that the speaker does not need to be a sitting member of Congress.
"The Speaker of the House need not be a member of Congress… Nothing would disrupt the swamp more than electing Elon Musk… think about it... nothing’s impossible. (not to mention the joy at seeing the collective establishment, aka ‘uniparty,’ lose their ever-lovin’ minds)," wrote Paul, a staunchly libertarian conservative on fiscal matters.
Musk, an outspoken critic of government waste, has weighed in on the spending bill debate and led a conservative revolt against the latest plan due to its bloated spending provisions — calling for lawmakers who supported the bill to lose their seats.
"Any member of the House or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending bill deserves to be voted out in 2 years!" Musk wrote on X. The legislation has angered conservatives, including President-elect Trump who also called for it to be scrapped.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., confirmed to reporters that the deal was dead while leaving the Capitol on Wednesday night. It came after GOP critics of the spending bill spent much of the day attacking Johnson's handling of the issue.
It's unclear if Paul was serious in his suggestion or if the post was made with tongue-in-cheek.
Democratic political strategist Jimmy Williams balked at the idea.
"Senators should stick to Senating and House Members should stick to their Chamber," Williams wrote on X. "No House Member gives a damn what a Senator thinks about who should be Speaker."
However, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., backed the idea.
"I’d be open to supporting @elonmusk for Speaker of the House," Greene wrote on X, replying to Paul. "DOGE can only truly be accomplished by reigning in Congress to enact real government efficiency. The establishment needs to be shattered just like it was yesterday. This could be the way."
Johnson ascended to the speakership after former House Speaker Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., was ousted late last year in a move initiated by eight Republican rebels, becoming the first House speaker to be voted out of the position in U.S. history.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D- N.Y., said last week that no Democrats will vote for Johnson on Jan. 3 when his leadership is scheduled to be voted on.
With Republicans set to hold a four-seat majority, Johnson retaining the gavel is not guaranteed.
Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., said Wednesday that he won’t vote for Johnson, barring a "Christmas miracle." Earlier this year, Massie supported Greene in pushing to remove Johnson from the speakership, but the vast majority of members in both parties ultimately voted to spike the ouster effort.
With Rep. Victoria Spartz, R-Ind., saying she will no longer caucus with Republicans while remaining a registered Republican, that may reduce Johnson's support to a single vote.
Paul is not the only senator to weigh in on Johnson’s leadership.
On Wednesday, Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo, took aim at the House speaker for the chaotic situation playing out on Capitol Hill and suggested change.
"It's ridiculous. It's a horrible plan. I can't believe that Republican leadership ever cooked it up," Hawley told "Hannity."
"Clearly, they didn't talk to Trump about it, and I tell you what, we need to have a serious look at who's leading this Congress because if this is the best they could do, I mean, it's just it's total incompetence, this is a disaster."
Hawley said the latest plan would saddle the incoming administration with a "terrible spending bill" and it would need to be revisited again in March.
"Under this bill, they'd shut the government down again, have to do this all over again, have to raise the debt ceiling again later, the same year," he said.
"This bill right here would add hundreds of billions of dollars to the deficit, and the worst part is, it is all for Dem priorities."
Fox News’ Danielle Wallace and Alex Nitzberg contributed to this report.
House Democrats on Thursday fumed over the spending bill drama and what they characterized as the outsize influence of Elon Musk and others in President-elect Trump’s orbit, after a bipartisan plan brokered by House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., collapsed just hours earlier.
Speaking to reporters outside a leadership meeting on Thursday, House Democrats expressed disappointment in Republicans for walking away from the negotiated argument, and many accused them of appearing to take cues from Musk.
Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., labeled the billionaire X owner "President Musk" while speaking to reporters Thursday.
"For the Republicans, for President Musk to come in at the last moment and blow up the deal is just intolerable," Nadler said. "You have to negotiate, and you have to be able to enforce what you're negotiating, and what was negotiated was a very good deal for the American people."
Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., said their caucus is "disappointed" in House Speaker Johnson, saying it appeared as though Musk is "president" and Trump "vice president."
This was echoed by Rep. Greg Casar, D-Texas. "My main question is just if Elon Musk is kind of cosplaying co-president here, I don't know why Trump doesn't just hand him the Oval Office."
"Speaker Johnson should maybe just hand Elon Musk the gavel if they just want that billionaire to run the country," Casar told reporters outside a House Democrat leadership meeting.
House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark, D-Mass., was emotional as she expressed her frustration with the protracted negotiation and a changed debt ceiling agreement, saying that in her view, Republicans "need to do the right thing for once."
She noted that she has "thousands of neighbors" and others in her district who are waiting for disaster aid or for a Small Business Administration loan. "Those are the loans that help people repair their homes. Those are the loans that help small businesses get back on their feet," Clark said.
She noted that Republicans did not replenish those funds when they passed the last spending bill, so in the meantime, these people "have been left out in the lurch."
"I just wanted to point out that this kind of chaos and dysfunction has real world impacts on hardworking people, and it's irresponsible and wrong," Clark said.
Musk's team did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for a response to the comments on his role in the spending bill negotiations.
Meanwhile, Trump has endorsed getting rid of the debt ceiling as part of the spending package in an interview with NBC News.
The U.S. national debt currently stands at over $36 trillion.
Trump reportedly said abolishing the debt ceiling would be the "smartest thing [Congress] could do. I would support that entirely."
FIRST ON FOX: Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, the leader of the Senate Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Caucus, is hoping to take on the centralization of the federal workforce in the Washington, D.C., area with a new bill that would relocate nearly a third of workers.
Ernst is leading a bill, titled the "Decentralizing and Re-organizing Agency Infrastructure Nationwide To Harness Efficient Services, Workforce Administration, and Management Practices Act," or DRAIN THE SWAMP.
The measure would authorize the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to relocate 30% of federal agency staff to places other than the metropolitan area surrounding Washington, D.C.
"My investigations have exposed how bureaucrats have been doing just about everything besides their job during the workday," Ernst said in a statement. "Federal employees have shown they don’t want to work in Washington, and in the Christmas spirit, I am making their wish come true. Instead of keeping them bogged down in the swamp, I’m working to get bureaucrats beyond the D.C. beltway to remind public servants who they work for."
"In addition to improving government service for all Americans, we can give taxpayers an extra Christmas gift by selling off unused and expensive office buildings."
Ernst has long been investigating federal government agencies and programs and what she deems as waste. With Donald Trump's announcement of DOGE ahead of his second administration, the Iowa Republican appears ready to hit the ground running with specific ideas already laid out for the president-elect.
Companion legislation is being introduced in the House by Rep. Aaron Bean, R-Fla., who is a co-leader of the lower chamber's DOGE caucus.
"The swamp is thick and deep here in Crazy Town, and I’m here to drain it. It is time to remind Washington that our duty is to serve the American people. I’m proud to join Senator Ernst to ensure the government works for the people, not the other way around," he said in a statement.
In November, Trump announced that billionaire Elon Musk and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy would lead DOGE, a proposed advisory board tasked with eliminating government waste.
"Together, these two wonderful Americans will pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies – Essential to the ‘Save America’ Movement," he wrote in a statement at the time.
Afterward, caucuses were formed in both the House and Senate, led by Reps. Aaron Bean, R-Fla., and Pete Sessions, R-Texas, and Ernst and Blake Moore, R-Utah, respectively.
Republicans in both chambers have already started rolling out a slate of bills aimed at fulfilling the mission of DOGE.
The 1,547-page interim spending bill to avoid a government shutdown is effectively dead. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has all but yanked the plan off the floor after President-elect Trump, Vice President-elect Vance and Elon Musk torched the package to avoid a government shutdown this weekend and fund the government through March 14.
Had House Republicans had the votes to pass the bill – without leaning too heavily on Democrats – Republicans may have been able to pass the bill late Wednesday afternoon before the intervention of Mssrs. Trump and Vance. But there was just too much grassroots pressure, sparked by Musk on X and elsewhere.
The stopgap spending package proved unpopular due to its size, and various legislative ornaments festooned on the bill like a Christmas tree. Conservatives were expecting Johnson to handle the spending plan differently this year at the holidays. But it backfired. Badly.
It’s notable that Mr. Trump did not weigh in until the 11th hour. He also demanded a debt ceiling increase. That’s something which faced the President-elect in the first quarter of the year and threatened to derail any legislative agenda or potentially spook the markets.
Johnson’s decision to veer off course – despite touting the bill heartily on Fox this morning – underscores several things.
This is a sign of things to come once President-elect Trump is in office. And that could present problems for Johnson as he may be at the whim of decisions by the new President?
Why did Johnson pull the bill?
It was wildy unpopular with his rank and file. But it devolved further once Musk and the President-elect got infused themselves.
In many respects, Johnson’s decision to pull the bill was all about January 3. That’s the day of the Speaker’s vote. With 434 members to start the new Congress, Johnson needs 218 votes. Otherwise, he lacks a majority and cannot become Speaker. The House must vote repeatedly – as it did in January 2023 - before electing former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) five days later in what was the longest Speaker’s race since the 1850s.
Johnson tried to salvage himself in the Speaker’s vote by adding emergency agriculture spending to the bill. But Johnson is now trying to salvage himself by coming up with a new bill.
The irony is that Johnson did not want to create drama before Christmas with a spending package. But drama is exactly what he got in what quickly became the worst Congressional holiday standoff since the fiscal cliff in 2012 or a government shutdown threat in 2014.
So here’s the $64,000 Question: What play does Johnson call next?
Does he do a clean CR to fund the government with nothing attached? Is it a bill that just re-ups current funding coupled with disaster aid? Do they attach a debt ceiling suspension as President-elect Trump has requested?
And then the biggest question of all: can ANYTHING pass at all? Especially without votes from the Democrats?
Johnson has a tranche of conservatives who won’t vote for any CR at all. Many of them would also not vote for a debt ceiling increase, either.
And even if there is a new bill, do conservatives insist on waiting three days to ponder that bill? That triggers a government shutdown right there.
The deadline is 11:59:59 pm ET on Friday.
So this is going to require someone to pull a rabbit out of a hat.
President-elect Trump’s maneuver today is reminiscent of a similar move he made in December 2019, which sparked the longest government shutdown in history.
Then-Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), then-Appropriations Committee Chairman Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) and others thought they had a deal to fund the government and avoid a Christmas-time shutdown.
The Senate voted for the bill. Senators even sat in the back of the chamber and sang Christmas carols during the vote.
Mr. Trump then balked at the last minute. House Republicans followed suit. The government shut down for more than a month.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., while speaking at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., called out House Republicans for breaking a bipartisan agreement to fund the government and avoid a government shutdown, accusing them of hurting everyday Americans across the country.
On Wednesday, House GOP leaders scrambled to search for a backup plan after reaching an initial bipartisan deal to avoid a partial government shutdown this Friday was buried by a barrage of opposition from conservative leaders.
Jeffries spoke about the failed deal, accusing Republicans and their leaders for not reaching the agreement.
"House Republicans, house democrats, Senate. Republicans and Senate Democrats reached a bipartisan agreement to fund the government, keep it open and meet the needs of the American people," Jeffries said, pointing out the agreement would provide disaster assistance for those affected by extreme weather events. "House Republicans have now unilaterally decided to break a bipartisan agreement that they made. House Republicans have been ordered to shut down the government and hurt everyday Americans all across this country…An agreement is an agreement. It was bipartisan and there was nothing more to say."
The minority leader also fired off a post on X, saying, "House Republicans have been ordered to shut down the government. And hurt working class Americans they claim to support. You break the bipartisan agreement; you own the consequences that follow."
As of Wednesday, the U.S. national debt – which is a measure of what U.S. taxpayers were on the hook for to the nation’s creditors – had reached $36,189,345,826,140.62, and was climbing at a rapid pace, showing no signs of slowing down. The federal government's budget deficit in the recently concluded fiscal year totaled $1.834 trillion, ranking the third largest in U.S. history.
Billionaire Elon Musk, who was appointed by President-elect Trump to serve as a co-chair of the newly-established Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, lambasted the bill on his social media platform, saying the 1,547-page continuing resolution (CR) bill is full of "pork."
Musk also wrote in a separate post, "The voice of the people was heard. This was a good day for America."
Trump adamantly opposed the bill on Wednesday through a series of posts on Truth Social.
"Sounds like the ridiculous and extraordinarily expensive Continuing Resolution, PLUS, is dying fast, but can anyone imagine passing it without either terminating, or extending, the Debt Ceiling guillotine coming up in June?" the incoming president asked. "Unless the Democrats terminate or substantially extend [the] Debt Ceiling now, I will fight ‘till the end. This is a nasty TRAP set in place by the Radical Left Democrats!"
He continued, saying Democrats are looking to embarrass Republicans when it comes up for a vote in June, and the people who extended it from Sept. 28 to June 1, "should be ashamed of themselves."
Trump called the extension "political malpractice," and reiterated the bad timing of Congress asking for pay increases.
"Hopefully, you’ll be entitled to such an increase in the near future when we, "MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!" he said.
In another post, Trump explained that trying to pass a clean CR without all of the bells and whistles Democrats want will be destructive to the country and his administration instead of the Biden administration.
"Any Republican that would be so stupid as to do this should, and will be Primaried," Trump warned. "Everything should be done, and fully negotiated, prior to my taking office on January 20th, 2025."
Congressional leaders released the text of their 1,547-page CR on Tuesday evening after last-minute negotiations delayed its original planned release on Sunday. A source familiar with discussions told Fox News Digital more specifically that the deal was largely struck between the top two Democrats and Republicans in each chamber.
Since its release, the CR has seen fierce pushback from conservatives and House GOP hardliners, many of whom are frustrated with unrelenting policy riders attached to the legislation, rather than a "clean" extension of government funding.
While the bill would avert a partial government shutdown through March 14 if passed, it also includes provisions on health care and ethanol fuel, along with $100 billion in disaster aid funding and measures to fund the reconstruction of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. The bill also includes the first pay raise for lawmakers since 2009.
Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom and Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.
House GOP leaders appear to be searching for a backup plan after an initial bipartisan deal to avoid a partial government shutdown on Friday was buried in an avalanche of conservative opposition.
The legislation angered conservatives in both the House and Senate – as well as President-elect Donald Trump's pick to co-chair his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Elon Musk.
As Musk called for lawmakers who supported the bill to lose their seats, Trump's presidential transition team released an official joint statement by Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance opposing the initial iteration of the deal.
The bill was expected to get a vote sometime on Wednesday afternoon, but a planned round of late afternoon votes was canceled. Instead, senior Republicans are huddling in the speaker's office to chart a path forward – less than 24 hours after the legislation was unveiled.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., told reporters while leaving Johnson's office in the early evening, "There will be a new CR likely tomorrow. They are negotiating right now. But there will be no votes this evening."
Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., told reporters a short while later that he anticipated a "skinny" CR without disaster aid or agricultural subsidies.
It came after GOP critics of the spending bill spent much of the day attacking Johnson's handling of the issue.
The 1,547-page bill is a short-term extension of fiscal year (FY) 2024 government funding levels, aimed at giving lawmakers more time to agree on funding the rest of FY 2025 by the Friday deadline.
It’s the second such extension, called a continuing resolution (CR), since FY 2024 ended on Sept. 30.
In addition to funding the government through March 14, the bill also has more than $100 billion in disaster aid to help Americans affected by Hurricanes Milton and Helene. It also includes an added $10 billion in economic relief for farmers, as well as health care reform measures and a provision aimed at revitalizing Washington, D.C.’s RFK stadium and its surrounding campus.
Members of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus said they felt blindsided by what they saw as unrelated policy riders being added to the bill in last-minute negotiations.
Several GOP lawmakers granted anonymity to speak freely said Johnson would see challenges to his speakership bid in early January over the matter.
But Johnson defended the deal on "Fox & Friends" Wednesday morning.
"When we start the new Congress in January, when Republicans are in control…we're going to be able to scale back the size and scope of government. But before we get to that point, remember right now, we only control one half of one third of the federal government. Remember, Democrats are still in charge of the Senate and the White House. So what we've done is the conservative play call here," he said.
Opponents of the legislation include Elon Musk, who posted on X, "Any member of the House or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending bill deserves to be voted out in 2 years!"
He later called on Republicans to leverage a partial government shutdown, "'Shutting down' the government (which doesn’t actually shut down critical functions btw) is infinitely better than passing a horrible bill."
Meanwhile Trump and Vance called for Republicans to reject the deal and instead opt for a CR paired with an increase in the U.S. debt limit – which was suspended until January 2025.
"Increasing the debt ceiling is not great but we’d rather do it on Biden’s watch. If Democrats won’t cooperate on the debt ceiling now, what makes anyone think they would do it in June during our administration? Let’s have this debate now. And we should pass a streamlined spending bill that doesn’t give Chuck Schumer and the Democrats everything they want," the statement said.
But simply bowing to his right flank may not get Johnson out of the woods, with Democrats warning him to not renege on their deal.
"House Republicans have been ordered to shut down the government.And hurt the working class Americans they claim to support.You break the bipartisan agreement, you own the consequences that follow," House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, R-N.Y., wrote on X.
Johnson was always likely to need Democratic help to pass a CR, given his slim margins in the House and widespread opposition to short-term funding extensions within the GOP.
But it's not clear if the number of Democrats willing to break ranks will offset that Republican opposition.
House leaders will also have to decide whether to put the bill through regular order – which will include a House Rules Committee vote followed by a House-wide procedural vote before lawmakers can weigh on the measure itself – or bypass that and rush the bill onto the House floor in exchange for raising the threshold for passage to two-thirds rather than a simple majority.
All the while, the clock is ticking until the partial government shutdown deadline at the end of Friday.
President-elect Trump on Wednesday said he is "totally against" the continuing resolution (CR) being debated by the House to keep the government from shutting down through March.
Trump spoke with "FOX & Friends" co-host Lawrence Jones on Wednesday, telling him the "fight starts now."
"I just spoke with President-elect [Trump], and he is ‘totally against’ the proposed CR," Jones wrote in a post on X.
In another post, the morning show co-host wrote, "The President-elect [Trump] believes that the ‘fight starts now,’ rather than waiting until he is sworn in.
Jones later wrote, "The President-elect [Trump] acknowledged [House Speaker Mike Johnson’s] challenging situation but emphasized that this approach is not the appropriate course of action."
Congressional leaders in Washington, D.C., released the text of their 1,547-page CR on Tuesday evening after last-minute negotiations delayed its original planned release on Sunday. A source familiar with discussions told Fox News Digital more specifically that the deal was largely struck between the top two Democrats and Republicans in each chamber.
Since its release, the CR has seen strong opposition from conservatives and House GOP hardliners, many of whom are frustrated with unrelenting policy riders attached to the legislation, rather than a "clean" extension of government funding.
While the bill would avert a partial government shutdown through March 14 if passed, it also includes provisions on health care and ethanol fuel, along with $100 billion in disaster aid funding and measures to fund the reconstruction of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. The bill also includes the first pay raise for lawmakers since 2009.
Republican congressional leaders have defended their plan for a stopgap spending bill, arguing it would allow Trump to have a greater influence on spending when the question comes up again in the spring.
Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance released a statement on the spending bill on Wednesday.
"The most foolish and inept thing ever done by Congressional Republicans was allowing our country to hit the debt ceiling in 2025. It was a mistake and is now something that must be addressed," they wrote. "Increasing the debt ceiling is not great but we’d rather do it on Biden’s watch.
"If Democrats won’t cooperate on the debt ceiling now, what makes anyone think they would do it in June during our administration? Let’s have this debate now. And we should pass a streamlined spending bill that doesn’t give Chuck Schumer and the Democrats everything they want.
"Republicans want to support farmers and pay for disaster relief while setting the country up for success in 2025."
"The only way to do that is with a temporary funding bill WITHOUT DEMOCRAT GIVEAWAYS combined with an increase in the debt ceiling. Anything else is a betrayal of our country," they said. "Republicans must GET SMART and TOUGH.
"If Democrats threaten to shut down the government unless we give them everything they want, then CALL THEIR BLUFF. It is Schumer and Biden who are holding up aid to our farmers and disaster relief. THIS CHAOS WOULD NOT BE HAPPENING IF WE HAD A REAL PRESIDENT. WE WILL IN 32 DAYS!"
Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, who was appointed co-chair of Trump’s newly established Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), also came out in opposition to Johnson’s proposed bill to keep the government funded on Wednesday.
Musk turned to his social media platform X to argue that the 1,547-page document is full of "pork."
The other co-chair of DOGE, Vivek Ramaswamy, expressed skepticism of the bill on Tuesday, though he did not outright oppose Johnson’s solution.
"Currently reading the 1,547-page bill to fund the government through mid-March. Expecting every U.S. Congressman & Senator to do the same," Ramaswamy wrote on X.
The GOP holds a one-seat majority in the House, meaning Johnson will likely have to rely on Democratic votes to pass the bill. The legislation must also pass the Senate by the Friday deadline to avoid a shutdown.
Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom and Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.
The co-leaders of the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have circled the wagons against a stopgap spending bill that has drawn the ire of conservatives in Congress.
"Unless @DOGE ends the careers of deceitful, pork-barrel politicians, the waste and corruption will never stop," Tesla and Space X CEO Elon Musk posted on X on Wednesday afternoon as Republican lawmakers mulled the best way forward for the CR to fund the government.
"Therefore, there is no choice but to do so. I wish there was another way, but there is not."
Former Republican presidential candidate and DOGE co-leader Vivek Ramaswamy has also been a vocal critic of the legislation and suggested in an X post on Wednesday that Republicans should put forward a simple 1-page resolution.
"Yes, it *is* possible to enact a simple 1-page Continuing Resolution, instead of 1,500+ page omnibus pork-fest," Ramaswamy wrote. "Here it is.:"
Ramaswamy continued, "This is what a clean CR looks like. I still don’t love it because it permits the historical spending excesses to continue, but at bare minimum, we shouldn’t be stacking even more waste on top."
Musk, who posted a video of Ramaswamy railing against the bill urging Americans to call their representatives to "stop the steal of your tax dollars," spent part of the afternoon re-posting comments from elected Republicans who voiced their opposition to the bill.
"Thank you!" Musk posted in response to GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna saying she will not vote for the "Cramnibus bill" due to "billions to Ukraine, mask and vaccine mandates, Deep State immunity."
"I will still fight for a standalone disaster relief bill," Luna wrote.
In an earlier post on X, Musk wrote, "Any member of the House or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending bill deserves to be voted out in 2 years!" Musk wrote on X.
Congressional leaders released the text of their 1,547-page CR on Tuesday evening after last-minute negotiations delayed its original planned being release Sunday. Since then, it's seen fierce pushback from conservatives and House GOP hardliners, many of whom are frustrated at the unrelated policy riders attached to the legislation – rather than a "clean" extension of government funding.
The final package extends existing government programs and services at their current operating levels for a few more months, through March 14, 2025.
The stopgap measure is needed because Congress has failed to pass its annual appropriations bills to fund all the various agencies in the federal government, from the Pentagon and national security apparatus, to the health, welfare, transportation and other routine domestic services. When the fiscal year ended on Sept. 30, Congress simply punted the problem by passing a temporary funding bill that expires Friday.
Fox News Senior Congressional Correspondent Chad Pergram reported on Wednesday afternoon that there is "talk now of pulling the CR and trying to do a 'clean' bill. but it is "unclear if that also means no disaster aid."
Stopping the 1,500 page spending package and forcing a vote on a clean bill would mark a significant victory for DOGE and its supporters, who have been vocally pushing for changes in the way that government spending bills are handled.
"This bill is contrary to the very existence of @DOGE," GOP Rep. Chip Roy's press office posted on X. "The @HouseGOP should vote NO. Miss Christmas if we must."
Pergram posted on X on Wednesday after that the bill was "bleeding support from Republicans."
"As to Elon Musk weighing in, telling lawmakers that all should be voted out in two years, a member of the House Republican leadership told Fox that Musk ‘is not helping. He has bigger fish to fry than picking a fight with House Republicans,'" Pergram wrote.
Johnson's difficulty coming to an agreement with his razor-thin majority in the House has resulted in names being floated to possibly replace him in the next Congress, Fox News Digital reported.
Fox News anchor Lawrence Jones reported late Wednesday afternoon that President-elect Trump is "totally against" the CR although he "acknowledged" that Johnson is in a precarious position.
During an appearance on Fox & Friends on Wednesday morning, Johnson shared that while government debt and deficits are a concern, Republicans must approve "short-term stopgap funding measures" while Democrats still control the White House and Senate.
"We've got it in our central focus and when we start the new Congress in January, when Republicans are in control and DOGE (the Department of Government Efficiency) is working on all six cylinders, we're going to be able to scale back the size and scope of government," he said.
Johnson also said the move would ensure Republicans can control spending for 2025, describing it as an "impossible position."
"This is the sausage-making process," he added.
The House Speaker also revealed that he has been on a text chain with Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, who will helm DOGE.
"Remember, guys, we still have just a razor-thin margin of Republicans. So, any bill has to have Democrat votes. They understand the situation." Johnson said, referencing the text exchange.
If Republicans are unable to rally the necessary votes or receive enough support from Democrats to push it through despite the vocal opponents within the party, the country would face a government shutdown on Friday night.
"What does President Trump want Republicans to do: vote for the CR or shut down government? Absent direction, confusion reigns," said retiring Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, in a sly post on X.
Late Wednesday afternoon, Trump said in a statement, "If Democrats threaten to shut down the government unless we give them everything they want, then CALL THEIR BLUFF."
Musk addressed the shutdown possibility on X writing that "shutting down the government (which doesn't actually shut down critical functions btw) is infinitely better than passing a horrible bill."
Fox News Digital's Anders Hagstrom, Liz Elkind, Nikolas Lanum and the Associated Press contributed to this report
A State Department agency – which has been chided by conservatives for its alleged blacklisting of Americans and news outlets – is set to be refunded in the continuing resolution (CR) bill currently being hammered out among lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
The Global Engagement Center has been included in page 139 of the CR. Although it doesn’t specify its budget allocation, a previous Inspector General report shows the agency’s FY 2020 budget totaled $74.26 million, of which $60 million was appropriated by Congress.
The provision in the CR can be found under "Foreign Affairs Section 301. Global Engagement Center Extension," and comes despite the State Department saying in response to a lawsuit that it intended to shut down the agency by next week.
The GEC, according to reporter Matt Taibbi, "funded a secret list of subcontractors and helped pioneer and insidious—and idiotic—new form of blacklisting" during the pandemic.
Taibbi wrote last year when exposing the Twitter Files that the GEC "flagged accounts as ‘Russian personas and proxies’ based on criteria like, ‘Describing the Coronavirus as an engineered bioweapon,’ blaming ‘research conducted at the Wuhan institute,’ and ‘attributing the appearance of the virus to the CIA.’"
"State also flagged accounts that retweeted news that Twitter banned the popular U.S. website ZeroHedge, claiming it 'led to another flurry of disinformation narratives.'" ZeroHedge had made reports speculating that the virus had a lab origin.
Elon Musk previously described the GEC as being the "worst offender in US government censorship & media manipulation."
"They are a threat to our democracy," Musk wrote in a subsequent tweet.
The GEC is part of the State Department but also partners with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Central Intelligence Agency, the National Security Agency, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, the Special Operations Command and the Department of Homeland Security. The GEC also funds the Atlantic Council's Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab).
Taibbi offered various instances in which the DFRLab and the GEC sent Twitter a list of accounts they believed were engaged in "state-backed coordinated manipulation." However, a quick glance from Twitter employees determined that the list was shoddy and included the accounts of multiple American citizens with seemingly no connection to the foreign entity in question.
DFRLab Director Graham Brookie previously denied the claim that they use tax money to track Americans, saying its GEC grants have "an exclusively international focus."
A 2024 report from the Republican-led House Small Business Committee criticized the GEC for awarding grants to organizations whose work includes tracking domestic as well as foreign misinformation and rating the credibility of U.S.-based publishers, according to the Washington Post.
The State Department, in response to a lawsuit, said it intended to shut down the agency on Dec. 23. But the CR provision means, if passed, it will continue to operate.
The lawsuit was brought by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Daily Wire and the Federalist, who sued the State Department, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and other government officials earlier this month for "engaging in a conspiracy to censor, deplatform and demonetize American media outlets disfavored by the federal government."
The lawsuit stated that the GEC was used as a tool for the defendants to carry out its censorship.
"Congress authorized the creation of the Global Engagement Center expressly to counter foreign propaganda and misinformation," the Texas Attorney General’s Office said in a press release. "Instead, the agency weaponized this authority to violate the First Amendment and suppress Americans’ constitutionally-protected speech.
The complaint describes the State Department’s project as "one of the most egregious government operations to censor the American press in the history of the nation.’"
The lawsuit argued that The Daily Wire, The Federalist, and other conservative news organizations were branded "unreliable" or "risky" by the agency, "starving them of advertising revenue and reducing the circulation of their reporting and speech—all as a direct result of [the State Department’s] unlawful censorship scheme."
Meanwhile, America First Legal, headed up by Stephen Miller, President-elect Trump’s pick for deputy chief of staff for policy, revealed that the GEC used taxpayer dollars to create a video game called "Cat Park" to "Inoculate Youth Against Disinformation" abroad.
The game "inoculates players … by showing how sensational headlines, memes, and manipulated media can be used to advance conspiracy theories and incite real-world violence," according to a memo obtained by America First Legal.
Mike Benz, the executive director at the Foundation For Freedom Online, said the game was "anti-populist" and pushed certain political beliefs instead of protecting Americans from foreign disinformation, per the Tennessee Star.
A State Department spokesperson said the agency does not comment on pending legislation when asked for comment by Fox News Digital.
Fox News Digital reached out to the GEC for comment on its potential refunding but did not immediately receive a response.
Fox News Nikolas Lanum and Louis Casiano contributed to this report.
As conservative lawmakers decry a government spending measure released at the last-minute to avert the looming prospect of a partial government shutdown, Rep. Kat Cammack quipped that conservatives should launch an OnlyFans account.
"Conservative Republicans should start an OnlyFans account considering how often we get screwed… The CR is a bad deal," the Florida Republican declared in a post on X.
GOP Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona also playfully noted that he plans to oppose the measure.
"'Twas three days before the gov't shutdown And I’m at my desk On page 54 of this 1,547 page mess. The CR is garbage Chocked full of carnage. I’ll be a hard no I won’t stoop that low," he tweeted.
Republican Rep. Andrew Clyde of Georgia referred to the measure as the "Christmas Cramnibus" and GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, also of the Peach State, called it a "Christmas CR lump of coal."
Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., also declared her opposition, noting, "I got a word for this CR: nope."
"Many of the loudest, self-proclaimed ‘@DOGE Heroes’ in Congress will vote for the CR—even though it flies in the face of everything @DOGE is trying to fix & perpetuates the very problems Republicans railed against while campaigning this year," Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, stated in a post on X. "Then they’ll say "@DOGE will fix it!"
President-elect Donald Trump tapped Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to helm the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, an effort to root out government waste and advocate for lower spending. The duo "will serve as outside volunteers, not federal officials or employees," they noted in a Wall Street Journal piece last month.
"Pay attention to the members of Congress who have been all in for @DOGE for media attention but will vote for the short-term omnibus. They are the Swamp," Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., declared in a tweet.
House Appropriations Committee chair Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., made arguments in favor of approving the proposal, which according to a press release, contains billions for disaster relief.
"While a continuing resolution is not ideal, this strategy ensures President Trump has a voice in shaping the final FY25 bills. Importantly, it averts a costly government shutdown that would only serve to handcuff the start of his new administration," Cole noted, according to the press release.
"At the same time, we cannot ignore the devastation caused by natural disasters across the nation," he noted. "This bill provides crucial relief for Americans recovering from these disasters, including those in my home state of Oklahoma, and also generates economic benefits for the nation. We have a responsibility to help our fellow citizens rebuild and restore, and this legislation demonstrates shared resilience and unity in the face of tragedy."
Elon Musk chimed in to render his own verdict on the proposal, giving it the thumbs down.
"This bill should not pass," he declared in a post on X.
"Ever seen a bigger piece of pork?" he asked in another post when sharing a photo of the first page of the measure sitting atop a towering stack of papers, presumably the rest of the more than 1,500-page document.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., addressed Musk's disapproval on Fox & Friends Wednesday morning, saying he had spoken to both Musk and Ramaswamy in a text. "They said, ‘This is not directed at you, Mr. Speaker, but we don't like the spending bill. I said, ‘Guess what, fellas, I don’t either. We gotta get this done because here's the key: by doing this, we're clearing the decks and we are setting up for Trump to come in roaring back with the America First agenda."
Billionaire and key Trump ally Elon Musk came out in opposition to House Speaker Mike Johnson's proposed bill to keep the government funded on Wednesday.
Musk attacked the bill on social media, arguing the 1,547-page document is full of "pork." The legislation is designed to avoid a Friday government shutdown and fund the government through March.
"This bill should not pass," Musk wrote bluntly on X.
Republican congressional leaders have defended their plan for a stopgap spending bill, arguing it would allow President-elect Trump to have a greater influence on spending when the question comes up again in the spring.
Vivek Ramaswamy, another ally of Trump, expressed skepticism of the bill Tuesday night, but did not oppose it outright.
"Currently reading the 1,547-page bill to fund the government through mid-March. Expecting every U.S. Congressman & Senator to do the same," Ramaswamy wrote on X.
Trump himself has not weighed in on the budget battle, but several GOP lawmakers had expressed skepticism of a large funding package earlier this week.
"We talked with the speaker up until this weekend, the only discussion was ‘How long is this clean CR going to be?’ And suddenly we find out – I heard rumors over the weekend – they’re negotiating with a health care package that included PBM stuff," Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo., told Fox News Digital before the bill released on Tuesday.
"PBM stuff" refers to a provision in the bill lessening the influence of pharmacy benefit managers.
Johnson has given lawmakers three days to read the bill, setting up a vote for Friday. He has argued that the bill's massive bulk is due to natural disasters and other incidents that must be paid for but are out of the government's control, rather than the omnibus spending plans of previous years.
The bill includes $100 billion in disaster relief for Hurricanes Milton and Helene, as well as $8 billion for the rebuilding of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.
The GOP currently holds just a one-seat majority in the House, meaning Johnson will likely have to rely on Democratic votes to pass the bill. The legislation must also pass the Senate by the Friday deadline to avoid a shutdown.
Fox News' Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.
