Musk-ular Political Power Play Sends US Govt On Path To Shutdown. The Bill That Got Musk’s Goat, But Who Is The Real President Here?

The president-elect and the world’s richest man, Donald-Musk, combined Wednesday to smash a short-term spending compromise much orchestrated by Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson to keep the government open until early in Trump’s new term.

The stop-gap measure was packed with nearly $100 billion in aid for Americans hit by multiple national disasters, economic aid for farmers, a federal commitment to rebuild Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge and a criminalization of revenge porn.

But the Trump-Musk blocking maneuver pushed the capital into one of its classic year-end crises, and perhaps has offered a preview of the chaos that may inadvertently play Trump’s second term and yes it has already led to the damaging government shutdown.

How Musk And Ramaswamy Did It

Reportedly, while some conservatives were already skeptical of the continuing resolution even before it was officially published, Musk and his co-Department of Government Efficiency leader Vivek Ramaswamy suddenly began blasting the bill online Wednesday, riling up their tens of millions of supporters with posts stoking outrage about its contents.

“This bill should not pass,” Musk wrote on X at 4:15 a.m. ET, kicking off what would become a blizzard of posts about the legislation. It was only a matter of time before the bill died.

Musk also used his platform to push for a government shutdown, arguing it would not hurt “critical functions.” While that is partially true, shutdowns cost the economy billions of dollars. And there are millions of federal employees who would not be paid while the government is shut during the holidays. Also, such massive spending bills are often chock-full of add-ons in addition to necessary spending to keep the government open.

Musk has always prided himself on doing things differently, ignoring the rules (written or not) and breaking the mold – for better or for worse.

President Musk?

Since Musk began showing up by Trump’s side, memes of a “President Musk” have been flourishing online, and furious Democrats are starting to question whether Musk is a “shadow president.”

“It’s clear who’s in charge, and it’s not President-elect Donald Trump,” said one Democrat. “Shadow President Elon Musk spent all day railing against Republicans’ CR, succeeded in killing the bill, and then Trump decided to follow his lead.”

“Democrats and Republicans spent months negotiating a bipartisan agreement to fund our government. The richest man on Earth, President Elon Musk, doesn’t like it.”

But here is what Musk had to say –  it’s not the Republicans who are giving him power, it’s the “people.” “All I can do is bring things to the attention of the people, so they may voice their support if they so choose,” Musk wrote on X on Wednesday.

Disruptions…..

But now some Republicans are suggesting making Musk’s power official.

“The Speaker of the House need not be a member of Congress,” Sen. Rand Paul wrote on X. “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).”

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene joined in, writing she’d be “open to supporting” Musk as Speaker.
“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,” she wrote on X. “This could be the way.”

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Although, there’s no indication Musk is seriously suggesting becoming speaker of the House, considering his multiple businesses that require his attention. Nevertheless, Musk’s first real foray into affecting a major piece of legislation now seems to illustrate what can be expected.

Whose The Real President?

Tesla CEO Elon Musk wasn’t a candidate in this year’s presidential race, but he suddenly seems to be running the show in Washington, D.C.

Musk has quickly emerged as the most influential adviser to incoming President Donald Trump, as well as the richest and most vocal. And he seems to be adding the US government to the list of organizations he runs, or aims to.

Musk, however, is probably just getting started. After Musk backed Trump in the 2024 election, Trump rewarded him with the unofficial job of running a commission to overhaul the entire US government. Thus, Musk’s newfound influence in the the White House suggests he has large ambitions.

Musk is obviously used to running things. He owns or controls six companies, including Twitter, now X, which is rapidly becoming a stage that allows Musk to rouse millions to action on whatever cause he deems worthy. A per reports during his tweetstorm on the funding bill, members of Congress reported a deluge of calls and emails demanding they do what Musk called for.

Therefore, can Musk be content with an advisory role that has no real power?

Trump might be wondering that. Some reports say Trump was “blindsided” by Musk’s assault on the funding bill, with a power struggle now underway between the two. Thus, there are ways the Trump-Musk alliance could unfold.

Still, what got elected to the White House stays in the White House, But will Musk understand his place and stop trying to be co-president. Trump got elected; he didn’t.