President Donald Trump said he was "disappointed" with Elon Musk after the billionaire criticized the Big Beautiful Bill. (Reuters)
It's a process that's historically known to be rife with "pork barrel spending" from both Republicans and Democrats – funding for pet projects or other specific initiatives benefiting a certain member of Congress' district.
But reconciliation deals with the government's "mandatory spending" – largely government welfare programs that can only be amended by changing the law.
"We're dealing with mandatory spending programs – entitlements, health care, welfare and the tax code," Arrington said.
"We did a responsible bill. There's no pork in it. The question, I think, for some folks and the objective of mine and my budget committee members was, whatever we're doing on tax or security to unleash growth and to buy greater security for the American people, we wanted it to be done in a fiscally responsible way."
Senior White House adviser Stephen Miller echoed that sentiment on X: "The reconciliation bill cuts taxes, seals the border and reforms welfare. It is not a spending bill. There is no ‘pork.’ It is the campaign agenda codified."
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White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller also argued that reconciliation bills couldn't include "pork." (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
As part of his social media campaign against the bill, Musk called for both eliminating the tax cuts and removing the debt limit increase from the final legislation.
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Musk reposted another X user who wrote, "Drop the tax cuts, cut some pork, get the bill through."
He's also shown support on X for Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and his call to strip the debt limit provision out of the bill.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has projected that the bill would cut taxes by $3.7 trillion while raising deficits by $2.4 trillion over a decade.
Elizabeth Elkind is a politics reporter for Fox News Digital leading coverage of the House of Representatives. Previous digital bylines seen at Daily Mail and CBS News.
Follow on Twitter at @liz_elkind and send tips to elizabeth.elkind@fox.com
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/house-budget-chairman-explains-why-theres-no-pork-trump-tax-bill-after-elon-musk-attacks