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Republican senators John Cornyn of Texas and Roger Marshall of Kansas shared their thoughts on the sudden, escalating feud between Elon Musk and President Donald Trump, with one senator saying Musk needs to realize “he’s not the CEO here.”
After denying “outlandish” Democratic claims that the Trump-backed “big, beautiful bill” would result in cuts to Medicaid and SNAP benefits if passed, Cornyn addressed whether he believes Trump is wise to threaten to cancel all of Musk’s companies’ government contracts.
Musk and Trump have been locked in an escalating war of words over their disagreement about the president’s proposed budget bill, which is being considered by the Senate.
In an X post Tuesday, Musk said: “I’m sorry, but I just can’t stand it anymore. This massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill is a disgusting abomination. Shame on those who voted for it: you know you did wrong. You know it.”
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Musk then asserted Thursday afternoon that Trump “is in the Epstein files” and “that is the real reason they have not been made public.”
Meanwhile, Trump has said Musk is “wearing thin” during his leadership at DOGE and asserted he “asked him to leave.”
“I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!” Trump said on Truth Social.
The president also said Thursday “the easiest way to save money in our Budget, Billions and Billions of Dollars, is to terminate Elon’s Governmental Subsidies and Contracts.
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“I was always surprised that Biden didn’t do it!”
Cornyn stopped short of criticizing either side, telling Fox News Digital Musk “has done a great service to the nation” and “I’m grateful to President Trump for bringing him on board and initiating DOGE.”
Even through Musk’s spat with the president, Cornyn said the Department of Government Efficiency is “going to now be a permanent part of our discussions up here.”
“Everybody believes, or understands, I should say, that the federal government is too big and too bloated and inefficient, and Elon and DOGE was very effective, I thought, at pointing out some of the most egregious examples of that,” the Texas Republican said.
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Marshall responded to the controversy by telling Fox News Digital, “We appreciate what Elon did for the government, but it’s time to move on.
“What Elon doesn’t realize is that he’s not the CEO here.
“Working for Congress, working for the people back home is so much different than being a CEO. [When] you’re a CEO, you tell people jump, they say, ‘How high do you got to go?’ But President Trump is working with a board.”
Marshall described the president’s role as “working with a board of a big business.”
“There’s 435 across the Capitol way here. There’s 100 in the Senate. We’ve all got opinions. And, right now, this bill, I think 90% of the folks up here, Republicans, thinks that it’s where it needs to be,” he said.
Though acknowledging “there’s opportunities for improvement” and “I agree with Elon that we’re still spending too much money, that we need more cuts, I’ve learned a long time ago to stay locked in on my goal. And I am locked in on getting this one big, beautiful bill across the line.”
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“I can guarantee you we’re not paying any attention to this little feud going on,” he concluded.
Regarding Democratic accusations that the bill will drastically cut Medicaid and SNAP benefits, Marshall said, “We’re going to do the right thing, but protect it for those who need it the most.”
He posited that the Medicaid system is rife with illegal aliens and other individuals using the program “fraudulently.”
Addressing the rest of those not using the system fraudulently, the senator said, “We’re not going to take grandma out of the nursing home. We’re going to make sure that she has her Medicaid.
“Persons with disabilities, I will fight to keep their Medicaid for them, children as well. But, on the other hand, there’s probably 7 million healthy American men out there, working age, that really should be working and not on Medicaid, not on food stamps,” he added. “So, let’s help those people get a job.”
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