Washington DC [USA], February 26 : Elon Musk's aggressive efforts to cut down the federal bureaucracy are starting to generate backlash, which could potentially harm President Donald Trump and the GOP, reported CNN.
Musk's actions, including asking federal workers to justify their productivity, have been met with confusion and criticism from some Republicans, who worry that the chaos could make it harder to enact Trump's agenda.
According to a report by CNN, "Elon Musk's chainsaw is not only slashing away at the bureaucracy but is generating the first warning signs that it could eventually cut deep into the political standing of President Donald Trump and his MAGA allies."
Sources report to CNN that political risks are rising for Republicans as the administration's court defeats pile up, and conflicting instructions from the SpaceX chief-turned-government cost cutter and the rest of the administration foment confusion.
The report in CNN further opines that "Trump often prospers in the chaos that he foments, and the erratic swathe that Musk is slicing through the civil service is a direct response to the fury many voters expressed in last year's election. And for some in Trump's base who embrace the president's anti-elite rhetoric, the act of subjecting federal workers to fear and pain may be a political end in itself. Among conservatives more generally, meanwhile, cutting government is perennially popular."
But pushback from some of the most authentic Make America Great Again (MAGA) Cabinet secretaries to Musk's email to federal workers asking "what did you do last week?" hints at another possibility - concern that confusion and morale-busting assaults on staff could make it harder to enact Trump's agenda.
Some GOP members of Congress are already facing backlash from constituents over Musk's actions, with several House Republicans seeking guidance on how to handle the situation. The human toll of the firings, including the impact on federal workers and their families, is also starting to gain attention, with some workers going door-to-door in the Senate demanding action.
"Things are happening so fast and furiously," Rep Nicole Malliotakis told CNN's Manu Raju on Tuesday. "We need to take a step back and make sure that we're doing things in a way that we are rooting out the waste, the fraud and the abuse and the mismanagement, making programs efficient but not resulting in unintended consequences," the New York Republican said.
The situation is becoming increasingly complicated, with court challenges mounting against the administration's personnel and cost-cutting purges.
Some experts believe that if attitudes towards Musk harden, they could crystallize into broader opposition to Trump's plans, potentially making Musk a political liability for the president, reported CNN.