Elon Musk’s Medicaid Cuts Spark GOP Infighting as Congress Prepares for Controversial Vote

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Alex Bollinger
February 25, 2025
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9 minutes read

(Gonzalo Fuentes/Reuters)

The Department of Government Efficiency head, Elon Musk, has made clear his intention to significantly reduce Medicaid funding, sparking intense debate in Congress. Lawmakers are preparing to vote on a sweeping domestic policy agenda, one that has even some staunch MAGA Republicans expressing concern.

House Speaker Mike Johnson aims to push the proposal through this week, despite the fact that the massive Medicaid cut—totaling more than $800 billion over the next decade—has not yet received an official endorsement from former President Donald Trump. Trump has reportedly “expressed reservations” about the scale of the proposed reductions.

The proposed cuts could impact millions, with more than 72 million Americans currently enrolled in Medicaid. Voters across the country are mobilizing to fight the legislation, concerned about losing essential healthcare benefits.

Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) told Politico’s Rachel Bade that he is “all in on DOGE”—the Department of Government Efficiency—and that reducing the size of the federal workforce is “wildly popular” among Republicans in his district.

As the Wall Street Journal revealed that “Representatives of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency have been working at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services [CMS], where they have gotten access to key payment and contracting systems,” Musk took to X (formerly Twitter) to comment that CMS “is where the big money fraud is happening.”

Elon Musk President office — (Photo by Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

“That’s where the battle’s coming,” Gonzales told Bade. “There’s no doubt that there’s waste, fraud, and abuse in every program in the government, including Medicaid — but at what point do you stop cutting into the fat and start cutting into the bone? You can’t pull the rug out from millions of people.”

Bade reported that Gonzales has co-authored a letter with seven other House Republicans, many representing large Hispanic communities, urging Speaker Johnson to reconsider the GOP’s approach to Medicaid. Gonzales also confirmed plans to personally press the issue during a scheduled meeting with Johnson on Monday night.

As the House prepares to vote, the debate over Medicaid’s future intensifies. While Musk and his allies argue that significant cuts will eliminate waste and fraud, opponents warn that millions of vulnerable Americans could suffer severe consequences. The outcome of this vote may shape the country’s healthcare landscape for years to come.