Summary
Trump’s transition team reaffirmed his leadership of the GOP amid criticism that Elon Musk, a close ally, wields outsized influence.
Musk, co-leading Trump’s DOGE, launched a social media campaign against a bipartisan stopgap funding bill, calling it wasteful.
Democrats dubbed Musk the “real leader” of the GOP, blaming his posts for derailing the bill and risking a government shutdown.
House Republicans are now drafting an alternative funding plan to align with Trump’s demands, excluding a debt ceiling increase.
Reporters should ask if this alternative bill has been run by Musk for his approval first or if Musk has delegated this bill to Trump to deal with.
I wish we still had those types of reporters. I get that if they say something off base they’ll be doing local news spots for the rest of their career. But I wish they’d push back sometimes.