Stephen Miller Belittles Libertarians as ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ Hit With Opposition From Musk, Senators: ‘The First Ones Out’

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White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller belittled libertarians and accused them of “delusion” on Monday after the Trump-backed “Big Beautiful Bill” received opposition from libertarian Republicans and former DOGE head Elon Musk.
“The libertarian delusion is that there is a large political constituency for their ideology. It does not exist,” Miller wrote in a social media post. “Libertarians have never performed nationally above a number rounding to zero. And when libertarians run for president within the GOP, they are the first ones out.”
Miller made the post ahead of a Senate vote on the Republican Party’s controversial “Big Beautiful Bill,” which several Republicans in the House and Senate have criticized over its cost, protections for Big Tech, and other concerns.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) have all expressed opposition to the bill, and on Monday, President Donald Trump’s former special government employee Elon Musk even floated starting “a new political party” over the matter.
“It is obvious with the insane spending of this bill, which increases the debt ceiling by a record FIVE TRILLION DOLLARS that we live in a one-party country – the PORKY PIG PARTY!!” wrote Musk. “Time for a new political party that actually cares about the people.”
Trump has threatened to back primary challenges against any Republican who votes against the bill and ordered GOP senators last week to “lock yourself in a room if you must” to get the bill passed.
Despite Trump’s attacks against libertarian Republicans and Miller’s suggestion on Monday that the constituency for libertarianism “does not exist,” the Trump campaign worked hard to court libertarian voters during the 2024 presidential election.
Trump spoke at the Libertarian National Convention in May 2024, where he promised to “put a Libertarian in my cabinet” and other libertarians “in senior posts,” despite repeated booing from the audience.
“The reason I didn’t file paperwork for the Libertarian Nomination, which I would have absolutely gotten if I wanted it (as everyone could tell by the enthusiasm of the Crowd last night!), was the fact that, as the Republican Nominee, I am not allowed to have the Nomination of another Party,” Trump wrote after the event. “Regardless, I believe I will get a Majority of the Libertarian Votes.”