Reporter ‘Stunned’ By 38 Republicans Defying Trump and Elon Musk By Rejecting Spending Bill

Brandon Bell/Pool via AP

Washington Post White House economics reporter Jeff Stein is “stunned” by the number of Republican lawmakers who chose to defy Donald Trump and Elon Musk by voting against the spending bill.

Earlier this week, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) announced his bipartisan spending bill, negotiated with Democrats, to keep the government open until March. However, the bill died when Musk and the president-elect came out against him, leading to the creation of a smaller spending bill on Thursday night.

However, 38 Republicans joined Democrats in voting against the bill despite urging from Trump and Musk. Deficit hawks in the GOP were opposed to Trump’s demand that the debt ceiling be raised for two years.

I’m not a Congressional reporter so maybe this is unsurprising to those who are, but I’m honestly still kind of stunned by how many House Republicans — 38! — defied **Trump and Musk** to vote against the spending bill last night

1 GOP strategist told me today: “38 shows…

— Jeff Stein (@JStein_WaPo) December 20, 2024

“I’m not a Congressional reporter so maybe this is unsurprising to those who are, but I’m honestly still kind of stunned by how many House Republicans — 38! — defied **Trump and Musk** to vote against the spending bill last nigh,” wrote Stein on X, formerly Twitter.

He added, “1 GOP strategist told me today: ’38 shows weakness, and it feeds on itself. You either need to bring these people to heel or make an example of them — if you can do this with no penalty, this is going to only embolden people.'”

“Massive implications for the policy fights on taxes & spending next year w/ tiny House margins,” Stein concluded.

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