Tesla billionaire Elon Musk, who recently campaigned for U.S. president-elect Donald Trump, has been raising concerns about a looming "financial emergency" in the U.S.
Musk’s alarm over the spiraling $35 trillion U.S. debt coincides with a surge in bitcoin’s price—though it’s been outpaced by meme-based dogecoin, which has skyrocketed partly due to Musk’s endorsement of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, nicknamed “Doge.”
As speculation grows about Trump possibly using bitcoin to "wipe out" U.S. debt, Musk has voiced concern, calling U.S. debt growth “unsustainable.”
"Excess government spending is driving America into bankruptcy," Musk posted on X, the social platform he rebranded from Twitter, adding: "This debt growth is unsustainable." Musk’s comments responded to Kentucky senator and bitcoin advocate Rand Paul, who recently called the $2 trillion annual deficits "unsustainable."
Paul, who made headlines in 2015 by accepting bitcoin donations for his presidential bid, has said he believes crypto could one day replace the U.S. dollar, citing diminishing confidence in the dollar and rising government surveillance.
The U.S. national debt has surged, surpassing $34 trillion in early 2024, driven by pandemic-related stimulus spending that accelerated inflation and led the Federal Reserve to increase interest rates sharply.
Earlier this year, Trump floated the idea of using bitcoin to “pay off our $35 trillion debt—hand them a little crypto check.” In July, he proposed creating a “strategic national bitcoin reserve” and speculated that bitcoin could surpass gold’s $16 trillion market cap, speaking at the Bitcoin 2024 conference.
Musk’s criticism of U.S. spending has sparked calls for a “Doge Department of Government Efficiency,” which Musk believes could trim $2 trillion from the national budget. Named after the popular shiba inu “doge” meme, this department nods to dogecoin, Musk’s “favorite” cryptocurrency, which Tesla accepts as payment.
Dogecoin’s close association with Musk and the “Doge” brand has driven its price to more than double in the past month. Billionaire Mark Cuban even joked that Musk might put dogecoin in the U.S. Treasury.
