Trump allies are pushing the White House to rein in Elon Musk’s media appearances as his attacks on Social Security – which he called “the biggest Ponzi scheme of all time” – stoke concerns among lawmakers and constituents, according to a report.
Though President Donald Trump has vowed that Social Security is not going anywhere, Musk – the face of the government’s cost-slashing committee – has increasingly slammed the program during media interviews.
“There is no daylight between the President and Elon Musk,” a White House official told The Post in a statement. “Continued attempts to sow division in the Trump Administration are desperate and amount to nothing.”
“President Trump has been clear, the only changes to Social Security will be the end of taxation on this benefit to those who worked hard to earn it,” they continued.
During his appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast in late February, Musk called Social Security “the biggest Ponzi scheme of all time.”
Just a few weeks later, he took aim at the popular government program again during an interview with Fox Business host Larry Kudlow.
“The waste and fraud in entitlement spending, which is most of the federal spending, is entitlements, so that’s the big one to eliminate,” Musk said.
Some Trump allies – including Wall Street bigwigs, corporate leaders and lawmakers – have contacted the White House and even President Trump directly to call for Musk to be taken off the air or more scripted, according to an NBC News report citing anonymous sources.
A Trump adviser told NBC News they were aware of “outside concern” around Musk’s comments.
“Of course they don’t want their Social Security cut,” a White House official told the outlet. “So if they hear something on the news that Elon Musk is saying, that we should do something with Social Security — of course there might be some concerns. But the only concern they have to worry about is what the president of the United States is saying and what he’s doing.”
“We haven’t touched Social Security. We’re not going to touch Social Security,” they added.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also doubled down on the president’s message that Social Security is here to stay.
But Musk’s comments have still ruffled some feathers – especially after the billionaire Tesla founder has successfully taken a chainsaw to several government agencies.
“Without reforming Social Security and Medicare, both programs will collapse and take the government down with it,” a Republican lawmaker told NBC. “But the last thing we need to talk about is disparaging the system. It’s not a Ponzi scheme, it’s just an entitlement program that needs to be reformed.”
“The more of these Musk interviews, the more discussion we’ll have,” they said, adding that the 2026 campaign will likely be a referendum on Musk – with “ad after ad with the chainsaw.”
A representative for Musk did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
It’s a reference to the unforgettable image of Musk wielding a chainsaw on stage at the Conservative Political Action Conference last month, alongside President Javier Milei of Argentina.
But Musk’s DOGE has also symbolically taken an axe to what he has called wasteful and fraudulent spending – cutting grants for the Department of Education and attempting to shutter the US Agency for International Development.
A federal judge last week blocked Musk’s shutdown of USAID and called for employees to be reinstated.
Social Security staffers told NBC News that Musk’s comments on the entitlement program have worsened their concerns that the White House will move to privatize their department.
DOGE has closed some Social Security offices and tried to curtail telephone services so recipients will have to go in-person for help making changes.
These changes have increased wait times and could be particularly challenging for elderly recipients, employees said.
