Chris Matthews Calls Elon Musk ‘Elephant in a China Shop’: ‘He Doesn’t Know Anything About Civics’
Former MSNBC anchor Chris Matthews called Elon Musk an “elephant in a china shop” who is ignorant on how to get deals in Washington done after Republicans in the House rejected a spending bill to avoid a government shutdown.
Matthews joined Jonathan Lemire on Friday’s Morning Joe and said he’s never quite seen an example of someone like Musk so involved in Washington politics. Musk and President-elect Donald Trump initially opposed a spending bill supported by House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and the pair were pushing for a new version of that bill, which dozens of Republicans rejected, taking issue with several core features, including a temporary suspension of the debt ceiling.
Matthews argued Musk and Trump don’t understand that they “need” Democrats because the Republican majority in the House is far too slim (one vote) to be effective.
He argued:
You’ve heard of a bull in a china shop. This guy is an elephant in a china shop. These negotiations between the House Democrats and the House Republicans are very fragile. There’s a one-vote majority for the Republicans. The voters voted for that. They didn’t — they really voted to divide the House of Representatives, effectively. So that deal has to hold. You have to have Democrats aboard, because there’s 30 or 40 Republicans who will not vote with their party, that will always vote against any extension of the debt ceiling or anything like that that includes more government spending. So you need Democrats.
Matthews accused Musk of being ignorant on getting deals done in Washington, claiming the X owner “knows nothing about civics.” He added that Musk will be “personally” responsible if a government shutdown happens. Johnson has said there are plans for another round of voting to avoid this outcome.
“Along comes Musk with all his trillions of dollars, basically, doesn’t know anything about civics. The House is divided. You have to make a deal. He doesn’t understand that,” Matthews argued. “He’s thrown this whole thing up in the air and it’s going to have, probably, a government shutdown tonight because of him personally.”
Watch above via MSNBC.
