WASHINGTON — Some Republicans and figures whom President-elect Donald Trump has tapped to carry out his agenda were fuming over the contents of a short-term government funding bill Wednesday, less than three days before a partial shutdown would occur if no bill is passed by Congress.

After waiting hours to weigh in, Trump himself broke his silence over the proposed spending measure in a joint statement with Vice President-elect JD Vance Wednesday afternoon, criticizing it for including "sweetheart provisions" related to the former select committee that investigated the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6 and pay raises for members of Congress. 

The president-elect said his party supports the additional aid for farmers and disaster relief included in the legislation but called for an otherwise "streamlined spending bill that doesn't give [Senate Majority Leader] Chuck Schumer and the Democrats everything they want."

What You Need To Know

  • President-elect Donald Trump and some of the allies he tapped to carry out his agenda in his second administration are fuming over the contents of a short-term government funding bill on Wednesday
  • There are less than three days until the deadline for a government shutdown if no bill is passed in both chambers of Congress
  • Billionaire businessman Elon Musk came out with a strong rejection of the funding measure on X on Wednesday morning
  • Some sitting Republicans in Congress who will vote on the legislation are also seething, particularly those in the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus
  • GOP Rep. Chip Roy of Texas, called the legislation a “unpaid-for, deficit-increasing Christmas tree monstrosity” 
  • The more than 1,500-page short-term spending bill released after delays on Tuesday night would keep the government funded at essentially current levels until mid-March
  • It also includes add-ons such as around $100 billion in disaster relief, $10 billion in economic aid for farmers, a commitment to cover the cost of rebuilding the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Maryland, pay raises for lawmakers and more

Trump also called for lawmakers to work out a deal to address the imminent deadline to raise the debt ceiling before he takes office. 

"Republicans must GET SMART and TOUGH," Trump and Vance wrote in the statement. "If Democrats threaten to shut down the government unless we give them everything they want, then CALL THEIR BLUFF."

It comes after billionaire businessman Elon Musk, a close Trump ally who has been tasked with co-leading a new effort to cut government "waste," spent the day raging against the legislation on X on Wednesday. 

“This bill should not pass,” Musk wrote on his social media platform Wednesday morning, quoting a post from Vivek Ramaswamy, the businessman and former 2024 Republican presidential candidate who is working with Musk on Trump’s new government efficiency push.

Musk continued to rage against the funding proposal on X throughout the afternoon, calling it “a crime,” and “terrible.” 

“Any member of the House or Senate who votes for this outrageous spending bill deserves to be voted out in 2 years!” Musk wrote in another post.

Ramaswamy himself later wrote in a post that “The bill should fail.” 

Some sitting Republicans in Congress who will vote on the legislation were also seething, particularly those in the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus, who made clear earlier this month that they did not support President Joe Biden’s request for $100 billion in additional disaster aid to help communities recover from disastrous hurricanes this fall. 

The more than 1,500-page short-term spending bill released Tuesday night would keep the government funded at essentially current levels until mid-March, when new Republican majorities in both the House and Senate and a GOP-led White House will be tasked with working out a full budget for the rest of the fiscal year. 

But the bill, known as a continuing resolution, also includes additions such as the $100 billion in disaster aid, $10 billion in economic aid for farmers, a commitment to cover the cost of rebuilding the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Maryland, pay raises for lawmakers and more. 

In a post on X on Wednesday, GOP Rep. Chip Roy of Texas, a member of the House Freedom Caucus, called the legislation an “unpaid-for, deficit-increasing Christmas tree monstrosity." He said leadership should “start over.” 

Kentucky Republican Rep. Thomas Massie told reporters on Wednesday afternoon that he was a "hell no vote" on the bill, adding House Republican Speaker Mike Johnson is "losing political capital by the second." 

The frustration from conservatives has also sparked chatter about whether Johnson’s chances at securing the top job in the lower chamber again could be in jeopardy when the new Congress convenes Jan. 3.

Massie on Wednesday said he will not support Johnson next month and it would take a "Christmas miracle" to change his mind. 

Rep. Eli Crane of Arizona, one of the eight House Republicans who voted to oust former Speaker Kevin McCarthy amid similar outrage to a short-term government funding bill, told CNN “we’ll see about Jan. 3” when asked if he would still support Johnson. 

On the Senate side, Kentucky GOP Sen. Rand Paul, in a post on X, called the release of the continuing resolution a “sad day for America." He added that it shows Johnson is a “weak, weak man.”