GOP Senator Thanks Elon Musk for Stopping '300-Year-Olds' From Receiving Social Security

A Republican senator thanked Elon Musk for stopping "300-year-olds" from receiving Social Security and other federal benefits as part of his role with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott extended his gratitude to the Tesla CEO during an appearance on Fox Business Friday morning, insisting that Musk was able to find "hundreds of billions" of cuts.

"Let's thank Elon Musk for his amazing service to the American people. He has done what no one else has done before. [He] found hundreds of billions of dollars of cuts in waste, fraud and abuse. No more 300-year-olds getting Social Security checks because of Elon Musk," Scott declared.

"Thank God that President [Donald] Trump had the wisdom to put Elon in place. We will make sure those cuts are permanent in our spending packages going forward," he continued.

After Trump entered his second term earlier this year, he named Musk to help lead DOGE in an effort to reduce government spending. The businessman shared that he was stepping away at the end of May to return his focus to his various companies.

Although the goal of DOGE was welcomed by Republican lawmakers, the task force quickly drew backlash after several government agencies were hit with mass layoffs that left thousands without jobs.

While the Trump administration defended the cuts as part of efforts to restructure and streamline work, the cuts raised questions after several groups of terminated employees received messages from some federal agencies begging them to return.

Trump was later forced to clarify that Musk did not have the power to fire government employees.

Musk and DOGE had promised to eliminate trillions of dollars in spending and to reduce waste across the government. So far, the task force has yet to reach that number. Congress is expected to face a $9.4 billion package of spending cuts next week, Politico reported.

Originally published on Latin Times