US House Speaker defends stopgap spending as some Republicans, Musk baulk

WASHINGTON – US House Speaker Mike Johnson defended a stopgap measure aimed at funding the federal government until mid-March and averting a partial government shutdown despite complaints from some fellow Republicans and Donald Trump ally Elon Musk.

Mr Johnson, in an interview on Fox News, said the Bill was necessary to keep the government operating until US President-elect Trump and his fellow Republicans had full control of Congress, and could fully enact promised bigger spending changes.

Mr Musk, who along with fellow businessman Vivek Ramaswamy were

tasked by Trump to lead an outside advisory panel

that they say will make the government more efficient, baulked at the spending Bill and urged lawmakers to reject it.

“This Bill should not pass,” Mr Musk, who is the founder of Tesla, wrote in an early morning post on X.

Mr Johnson told Fox that he had spoken with Mr Musk and Mr Ramaswamy about the Bill’s circumstances on the night of Dec 17, including the 219-211 majority Republicans hold in the chamber while Democrats still control the Senate and White House until January.

“Elon and Vivek and I are on a text chain together, and I was explaining to them the background of this,” he said. “They understand the situation.”

Other Republican lawmakers voiced opposition to the Bill, which must pass by the night of Dec 20 in order to prevent a partial shutdown that would start on Dec 21 unless Congress acts.

The tentative deal would likely keep the roughly US$6.2 trillion (S$8.3 trillion) federal Budget at its current level, and includes US$100.4 billion in fresh disaster aid as well as US$10 billion in economic aid for farmers. REUTERS