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• Tesla CEO reiterates his negative stance against the social and climate spending bill
• Musk said the $2 trillion spending package would add to the “insane” federal budget deficit
Elon Musk voiced his criticism for President Joe Biden’s social and climate spending bill, highlighting his concerns regarding the “insane” federal deficit.
“Honestly, I would just can this whole bill. Don’t pass it, that’s my recommendation,” Musk said late Monday during The Wall Street Journal’s CEO Council Summit.
The Tesla CEO said that the $2 trillion spending package would add to the “insane” federal budget deficit, and would have the government incentivizing certain businesses, including up to $12,500 in incentives for electric car buyers.
“If this bill happens or doesn’t happen, we don’t think about it at all really,” he said. “Honestly it might be better if the bill doesn’t pass.”
Musk slammed the bipartisan infrastructure bill that was passed last month, which included $7.5 billion for building out electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
“Do we need support for gas stations? No, there’s no need for support for a charging network,” he told the surprised audience.
Last month at an event in Detroit celebrating the production of the electric Hummer SUV, President Biden had praised the bill, stating, “This infrastructure law with my Build Back Better plan, we’re going to kickstart new batteries, materials, and parts production and recycling, boosting the manufacturing of clean vehicles with new loans and new tax credits.”
The Build Back Better (BBB) Act, which has been passed in the House but is yet to go to the Senate, includes tax incentives of up to $12,500 for vehicles built by autoworker union members to spur consumer demand in electric vehicles.
The Tesla workforce isn’t unionized. Musk has repeatedly criticized the president for the pro-union benefits in the bill, calling him a “sock puppet” of the United Auto Workers, a union he has slammed as “fighting for their right to steal money from workers!”
Inputs from WSJ
Picture Credits: Economic Times