Thursday, February 06, 2025

Senate's Top Appropriator says Elon Musk has Gone Too Far

"Susan Collins says she is "concerned" about Elon Musk and the Trump administration's efforts to control congressional purse strings."

Posted by Corky at 01:33 PM | 12 COMMENTS | permalink

More

At last, one speaks out! Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins says thatTrump has empowered Elon Musk "far beyond what I think is appropriate." thehill.com/homenews/sen ...

[image or embed]

-- Amy Siskind (@amysiskind.bsky.social) February 5, 2025 at 8:07 PM

Comments

"Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, is raising alarms about the influence that billionaire Elon Musk is wielding inside the Trump administration and across federal agencies.

"There's no doubt that the president appears to have empowered Elon Musk far beyond what I think is appropriate," she told reporters Wednesday.

"I think a lot of it is going to end up in court."

'

Musk has helped orchestrate a de facto shutdown of the U.S. Agency for International Development and gained access to the Treasury Department system that controls trillions of dollars in federal payments.

Collins also repeated her unease Wednesday that the White House is undermining Congressional spending power.

"I am concerned if the Trump administration is clawing back money that has been specifically appropriated for a particular purpose," she said.

'

"Collins leads the Senate's efforts on writing spending bills and is in ongoing negotiations over "topline" funding levels with House and Senate colleagues ahead of the March 14 government shutdown deadline.

Unlike many Senate Republicans, Collins has been vocal about her discomfort with the White House usurping Congress' constitutional power of the purse."

#1 | Posted by Corky at 2025-02-05 04:57 PM

Bwhahahaha Susan Collins is about as useless as you can get. You might as well ask Santa for a billion dollars

#2 | Posted by LauraMohr at 2025-02-05 05:04 PM

Yeah, she's not 'going all the way' on this one; still voting for Trump's pick:

"She still plans to vote to confirm Russ Vought, Trump's pick for White House budget chief, who is expected to play a key role in the administration's larger efforts to wrest spending power away from congress. Vought is expected to be confirmed on Thursday."

She's got an ugly Patriotic streak, though, that Trumpers hate. Also it's her job as Chair to make sure the money is there, and it's going to end up in Herr Musk's pockets instead, so she's pissed.

#3 | Posted by Corky at 2025-02-05 05:23 PM

Susan Collins made her bed back when she refused to indict Trump.

Same with all the old guard Republicans who are being replaced by brain dead MAGAts.

McConnell Bush Cheney Romney Collins ... they just kept pushing for dumber and dumber segments of America to join the Republican Party and now those segments have taken over.

Sarah Palin really opened the floodgates for the below average idiot to enter politics.

#4 | Posted by ClownShack at 2025-02-05 05:36 PM

- dumber and dumber segments of America to join the Republican Party and now those segments have taken over.

aka The H L Mencken Proposition.

#5 | Posted by Corky at 2025-02-05 05:46 PM

Collins is "concerned."

I'd laugh, but I'm pretty much all chuckled out for day.

#6 | Posted by censored at 2025-02-05 05:51 PM

Most politicians 'concern' is for their job and their retirement, which by law now they need to take money from Oligarchs and others to keep.

Which is why that won't change until we make said Oligarchs do what they are already doing; paying politicians to write laws and loopholes for them.

Just with taxes this time, not direct bribes.

#7 | Posted by Corky at 2025-02-05 06:07 PM

Speaking of Herr Musk going too far.....

"Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wash.) introduced a bill Wednesday named Eliminate Looting of Our Nation by Mitigating Unethical State Kleptocracy (ELON MUSK) Act seeking to ban special government employees from obtaining federal contracts.

"Elon Musk gets more than $20 billion in contracts from the US government and bought his way into a new role in the government where he can direct even more money to himself. Enough," Pocan wrote in a post on the social platform X, which Musk owns.

"My new bill, the ELON MUSK Act, will end this grift!"

thehill.com

and

"DOGE officials home in on Medicare, Medicaid offices
by Nathaniel Weixel - 02/05/25 5:39 PM ET

Musk confirmed his interest in the health agency Wednesday, posting on social platform X that Medicare was "where the big money fraud is happening." He did not offer evidence."

thehill.com

#8 | Posted by Corky at 2025-02-05 06:54 PM

Sen. Tut-Tut can almost always be counted on to make some sounds and voice her concerns before toeing the line.

#9 | Posted by Doc_Sarvis at 2025-02-06 06:50 AM

AH!

Some good news:

Tesla Shares Plunge as Director Denholm Sells $43M in Stock

finance.yahoo.com

I love the smell of napalm in the morning.

#10 | Posted by Corky at 2025-02-06 05:42 PM

It's hilarious that everyone whining about Musk "has gone too far" never say that about our national debt.

#11 | Posted by humtake at 2025-02-07 11:46 AM

#11
You might consider getting out more, expanding your concept of "everyone." Seriously. Just saying.

#12 | Posted by Doc_Sarvis at 2025-02-07 11:50 AM

Drudge Retort Headlines

Lisa Murkowski: 'We Are All Afraid' of Retaliation (93 comments)

Senator Blocked from Visiting Abrego Garcia in El Salvador (81 comments)

Mass Shooting at Florida State University (38 comments)

National Day of Action (32 comments)

Speaker Johnson Is Eyeing Big Cuts to Medicaid (29 comments)

Blue Origin Flight Showcases Utter Defeat of US Feminism (27 comments)

SCOTUS Takes Challenge to Trump's Birthright Citizenship Order (25 comments)

Trump Seeks Criminal Prosecution of NY Attorney General (23 comments)

Trump Nominee Appeared 150 Times on Russian TV (21 comments)

Another US Citizen Incarcerated for No Reason (20 comments)