"Elon's telling the truth!": Dem Rep. says GOP bill will balloon debt and "get rid of Elmo"

Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., has found an unlikely ally in Elon Musk. 

Musk recently decamped from the Trump administration and has spent the days since his departure trashing Trump and the GOP over their massive spending bill. Moskowitz joined in the chorus on Wednesday, during a hearing on "NGOs gone wild," singing the praises of the tech billionaire while accusing House Republicans of talking out of both sides of their mouth on the topic of government efficiency.

"Elon has turned on them, but he's telling the truth," Moskowitz said. "The bill will add to the deficit and it will add to the debt... If you want to drop the "e" from DOGE, because we've not done efficiency, that's fine."

Moskowitz said that the "One Big Beautiful Bill" that recently passed the House would do nothing but inflate the national debt and kill off popular programs.

"They are going to do a $9 billion recision bill," he said. "They're going to get rid of Elmo, which the American people were clamoring for, but they're going to add $2.4 trillion to the debt."

Moskowitz went on to scoff at Republican leadership who trot the spending package out as a win.

"They want us to cheer for them and give them a trophy like they are a 5-year-old at a soccer game," he said. "Congress has not codified anything at all."

Start your day with essential news from Salon. Sign up for our free morning newsletter, Crash Course.

Moskowitz's remarks come in the midst of a growing feud between Musk and congressional Republicans. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., has repeatedly bashed Musk in the press after the SpaceX CEO called for all Republicans who supported the bill to be voted out. 

“I think he’s flat wrong, and I’ve told him as much,” Johnson said on Wednesday, claiming he had spoken to Musk directly.

How the one who brought Musk into national politics feels is about his recent about-face is a matter of some debate. Fox News reported that the president is "furious" with the SpaceX CEO. Politico, on the other hand, said Trump is not too concerned Musk's efforts to kill the bill, citing senior administration officials.