A longtime Democratic congresswoman went on a tirade on the floor of the U.S. House on Friday, accusing “President Musk” of derailing a bipartisan spending bill to keep the government from shutting down at midnight on Friday.
Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), who has served since 1991, did little to restrain herself as she pouted about the newfound power of the Trump ally to pressure House Republicans to adopt a more conservative bill or allow the lights to turn off while President Joe Biden is still in office. President-elect Donald Trump is on the same page, and on Friday urged Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) to be unafraid of fallout from a shutdown if it happens on “Biden’s watch.” But it was Musk’s first salvo on X stating the bipartisan agreement should die that provoked DeLauro’s fury.
YOURS FREE: Claim Your ‘Trump Victory’ Coin NOW!
“We agreed on a bill, and you know what? They got scared because President Musk told them, President Musk said ‘Don’t do it, don’t do it, shut the government down,’” the purple-haired DeLauro yelled. “What does he know about what people go through when the government shuts down?” The 17-term lawmaker with an annual salary of $174,000 continued on. “Are his employees furloughed? Hell no! Is he furloughed? No! And when you shut the government down, people don’t get paid. And maybe if none of us got paid if the government got shut down, some people on the other side of the aisle would feel differently about where we’re going and this effort!”
WATCH:
This is an actual sitting member of Congress who’s been in office since 1991.
How many cats does she own?
— AmericanPapaBear (@AmericaPapaBear) December 20, 2024
DeLauro’s theatrical presentation continued for another few minutes as she drew comparisons to previous shutdown agreements that were later scuttled in the face of conservative opposition. “Think about it: Biden, McCarthy, deal, come together. Next day, walk away! Johnson, Schumer, deal. Next day, walk away!” But with Republicans on the verge of total control in Washington, calls have grown to fund the government with slimmer packages than before, putting greater pressure on Speaker Johnson to find a solution that appeases his right flank without sacrificing moderate members seeking domestic or international funding priorities.
Since spending roughly $250 million to help President-elect Trump win in November, Musk has emerged as one of the loudest voices in Washington and remained a close ally throughout the early formations of the new administration. He and former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy will lead a new Department of Government Efficiency focused on rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse in government, an effort that has provoked other liberal lawmakers like Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA). After the Massachusetts Democrat sent the Trump transition team a letter asking it to establish conflict of interest rules for Musk, Trump spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt mocked Warren’s infamous claims of Native American heritage, as did Musk. “Pocahontas can play political games and send toothless letters, but the Trump-Vance transition will continue to be held to the highest ethical and legal standards possible – a standard unfamiliar to a career politician whose societal impact is 1/1024th of Elon Musk’s,” she said on Tuesday.
Other Republican lawmakers have publicly floated Musk for Speaker of the House in January if Johnson cannot close the deal. “I’d be open to supporting @elonmusk for Speaker of the House,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) suggested on X Thursday. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) echoed her enthusiasm in his own statement. “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,” he wrote.
(FREE GUIDE: Trump’s Secret New “IRS Loophole” Has Democrats Panicking)