The world’s richest man took aim at President Donald Trump’s proposed spending package, calling the One Big Beautiful Bill Act a fiscal disaster.
Teslo CEO Elon Musk, the former head of the Department of Government Efficiency, left the department as the legislation moved through Congress, warning it marks the largest increase in the debt ceiling in U.S. history.
“This spending bill contains the largest increase in the debt ceiling in US history! It is the Debt Slavery Bill,” Musk, who ranks No. 1 on Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index, posted on X on Wednesday. “I think a bill can be big or it could be beautiful. I don’t know if it could be both.”
The 1,100-page bill, approved by the House on May 22, must now negotiate the Senate. It pairs $1.2 trillion in cuts to Medicaid and food assistance with permanent tax breaks and $150 billion in new defense and border security funding. The Congressional Budget Office estimates it will add $2.4 trillion to the deficit over the next decade, with some forecasts pointing higher.
The timing is striking: U.S. national debt is already nearing $37 trillion, a historic high that has amplified concerns among fiscal conservatives and tech leaders alike. The White House is pushing for Senate passage before July 4.