The Democratic governor of California, Gavin Newsom, and his colleagues Sacramento state lawmakers have formed an uncomfortable but pragmatic partnership with prominent people from the MAGA movement in opposition to Trump’s “big, beautiful bill.”
Elon Musk went on X Tuesday to express his extreme disapproval of Trump’s massive budget and reconciliation package, which he referred to as “this massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill.” This came just days after Musk left the administration.
His usual sparring partner, Newsom, agreed with his outburst.
The governor told Musk, “I couldn’t have said it better myself.” That was his response.
Musk, who had a cordial relationship with Newsom while expanding numerous of his businesses in the state, but was frequently the object of criticism from the blue state leader while in the White House, has taken a new turn in their tumultuous relationship with Newsom’s vote of support.
Republican lawmakers who have voiced their disapproval of the reconciliation deal, such as Kentucky Senator Rand Paul and Representative Thomas Massie, were prompted to swiftly join Musk in his fury by Musk’s comments.
On Tuesday, however, Newsom found himself in accord with conservative firebrand Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) on a particularly contentious piece of the bill: a prohibition on the enforcement of artificial intelligence state regulation that was presented by Greene and her fellow Republicans and would last for ten years.
The member from Georgia has vowed to oppose the bill’s return to the House with the moratorium intact, which may cause problems for GOP leadership, who had a hard time getting enough votes the first time around. The package is now being discussed in the Senate, where it may not make it past the upper chamber’s Byrd rule, which aims to eliminate or severely limit spending on initiatives with no or very little effect on the budget.
On X, Greene expressed her strong opposition to the measure, calling it a violation of state rights. She added that she would have voted no had she known about it beforehand. Giving AI free reign and limiting nations’ ability to control it might be risky because we don’t know what it’s capable of in the next decade.
Concerned that the moratorium might lead to “overcorrecting in the other direction federally,” Newsom reiterates his earlier concerns about overregulating California’s expanding AI business.
On Tuesday morning, four Democratic legislators from California sent a letter to Congress opposing the ban on state AI laws; Greene subsequently reiterated their objections, just hours after they were sent.
In a joint statement with 260 other state legislators, they expressed concern that prohibiting AI laws at the state and municipal levels until Congress takes action will hinder AI policymaking and enforcement efforts, especially considering the federal government’s lack of action regarding privacy and social media concerns.
“In this year’s reconciliation package, we humbly request that you reject any provision that preempts state and local AI legislation.”