Bannon Warns Trump and Musk: There's 'A Lot of MAGAs on Medicaid' and They 'Can't Take a Meat Axe To It'

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: MEDIAite

Feb 13th, 2025, 8:48 pm


Steve Bannon offered a warning to President Donald Trump and Elon Musk on Thursday, saying Medicaid is a “complicated” program to cut. Trump tapped Musk to lead the “Department of Government Efficiency,” a roving group that has gone from department to department ostensibly to cut costs by laying off personnel and freezing money already been appropriated by Congress. The moves have prompted a wave of lawsuits and a series of rebukes from judges.

On Thursday’s War Room, Bannon – who has long advocated for addressing federal deficits – said there appears to be “confusion and mayhem” in Washington. Musk has pledged to shave $2 trillion off the federal budget, which is running at a deficit of about $1.8 trillion. Such a cut would be massive considering federal spending totaled $6.9 trillion in 2024. More than $600 billion of that went to Medicaid – a government health insurance program for individuals with low incomes.

“Show me the trillion dollars in cuts,” Bannon said. “I don’t want to $2 trillion deficit. I want to see it cut in half. How’d you do it? What they’re talking about, the 1.5 trillion over 10 years, that’s $150 billion a year. Now, I realize this may be taken differently, but it’s $150 billion. It’s not gonna work.” The former White House adviser in Trump’s first term went on to ask, “Where are the DOGE cuts? They’ve had enough time to identify at least the waste, fraud, abuse in these different organizations.” He added:

I think it’s generally confusion and mayhem on Capitol Hill. But hey, maybe I’m wrong. Maybe there’s some logic here and maybe they’re making some progress on this. But until we see the math, and I mean hundreds of billions of dollars in cuts, hundreds of billions of dollars in cuts, and stop whining about entitlements. Get into that discretionary spending. Get into the Pentagon.

Get into Medicaid. Medicaid, you got to be here because a lot of MAGAs on Medicaid. I’m telling you, if you don’t think so, you are dead wrong. Medicaid is going to be a complicated one. Just can’t take a meat axe to it, although I would love to.

Read more: https://www.mediaite.com/tv/bannon-warns-trump-and-musk-theres-a-lot-of-magas-on-medicaid-and-they-cant-take-a-meat-axe-to-it/

[BoRaGard]

1. "Ha ha. MAGAt suckers. Ha ha." - Presidont Mush (R) and Felon47

[liberalgunwilltravel]

2. Every state that Trump won

Should have all of their federal aid halted. That's what they voted for. Give it to them, and give it to them hard. And as far as meat axes go, there are millions that would love use one on Bannon and his ilk.

[piddyprints]

16. Sorry, but no.

There are plenty of Democrats living in red states, trying our best to change things. I did not vote for this and have objected, since grade school, to punishing everyone for the actions of others.

I certainly don’t have an answer to this horrifying mess, but cutting off everyone based on where they live is not the answer.

[SADAR]

45. Bless you

for saying so eloquently what I want to say.

[bucolic_frolic]

3. Bannon is out of the loop

Musk declares everything is waste and fraud. Then they gut everything.

[robbob]

23. This is the general approach

I noticed with the Jan 6th pardons; tRump gets up and flat out lies to the media, saying they “carefully reviewed all the cases”, when in fact all he did was issue a mass pardon to virtually ALL the rioters, even those who violently assaulted capital hill police.

Now they will tell us they are “carefully reviewing” Medicaid and Medicare, before making sweeping across the board cuts. And the media will faithfully transcribe and repeat their lies, and then convene a panel to lament the Democrats lack of an organized and coordinated response to the dismantling of America democracy, a dismantling that THEY help facilitate.

[C_U_L8R]

4. Rich kids and their toys

They're just going to fuck things up and break things.

[nature-lover]

25. Like Sid the evil kid in "Toy Story"

[William Seger]

5. He doesn't care about people; he only cares about Trump voters

[gab13by13]

6. Bannon used to be Trump's advisor,

Yes he wanted to tear down government but he was a populist, American first, isolationism. Bannon was kicked out by Musk who brought imperialism to replace populism.

This is really the fight I wanted to see since Bannon more represents unwashed Magats than Musk does.

[Deminpenn]

10. Agree

Bannon is true populist and is tune with how non cult Trump voters think.

Musk and Trump are grifters.

[Chemical Bill]

11. .

Bannon just pled guilty to grifting.

[Deminpenn]

34. Didn't say Bannon couldn't be both

but of the trio, he is the only one truly on the same page with the non-cultist Trumpers.

[Polybius]

40. A younger Pat Buchanan too

He was the a paleo-con.

[Deminpenn]

46. At age 86, he still is

nt

[Swede]

7. Trump will just tell MAGA it's Biden's fault and they'll believe their golden calf.

nt

[Vinca]

8. I'm sure the billionaires have no idea Medicaid keeps granny in the nursing home.

You want a riot? Mess with Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.

[GB_RN]

9. FAFO.

Batshit Bannon seems surprised that they fucked around and are in the find out phase.

Too. Goddamned. Bad. Asshole. You brought this down on yourselves, screwing the rest of us in the process.

[DownriverDem]

12. Many Seniors

end up on Medicaid when they are in nursing homes/assisted living facilities and their money runs out. So are they just going to kick them out? trump and musk do not research what their cuts would mean to real people. Same with Social Security. Folks will take to the streets if they cut benefits.

[Linda ladeewolf]

14. Musk and Trump

Do not care. There is a difference. Bannon doesn’t care, but he knows this will cost trump a lot of support. He knows trumps base is a violent group. There is always the chance of retaliation from the base. He wants to avoid that.

[IronLionZion]

13. MAGA vs Musk. Idiots vs supervillain

[NNadir]

15. FAFO.

[LaMouffette]

17. This is why President Musk and his vestigial twin, Trump, want access to Americans' voting records. They want to know

who voted for Trump and who voted for Biden so that they can take away the Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security benefits of Democratic voters only.

[johnnyfins]

20. This right here

The plan all along is to go after Dems/Libruhls.

They are awakening a sleeping giant.

[Ocelot II]

27. Voting records don't show actual votes; they just show that someone voted.

There is no way to know definitively who voted for Trump and who voted for Biden. Political contribution records are public and would be an indication of how a person might have voted, and voter registration records are also public - although in some states, like mine (MN) you don't register as a member of a political party. Party affiliation is too fluid for a scheme that punishes certain voters.

[Harker]

18. The implication being that decisions ought not to be made based on "waste, fraud, and abuse", but on who gets hurt.

No surprise, really, but it is unusual to have it stated so directly.

[Johnny2X2X]

19. They'll just blame Biden

And the MAGA will eat it up becuase the media is owned by the billionaire class.

[PortTack]

30. magas understand one thing...they are about to lose the only income they have. They are showing up at dem

Town halls begging the Dems to save them.

[Old Crank]

21. No need to worry MAGA oldsters...

Moses Mike and his church will take care of the needy. And the rest of the Evangelicals will line up to help.

[WestMichRad]

22. Is he suggesting

… that a political filter be used to determine eligibility for government assistance?

[Old Crank]

24. Bannon is last weeks fish.

He stinks and no one wants him around.

[Itchinjim]

26. Maga hasn't realized yet that Shithead doesn't need them anymore

[no_hypocrisy]

28. Hey Steve! Take a second look around!

A lot of MAGAs are on MEDICARE AND SOCIAL SECURITY TOO!!!

Maybe you guys should take a pause . . . . .

[Paladin]

29. This is just how fucked we truly are, right now.

Steve Bannon, sounding intelligent and reasonable---compared to the goons occupying the White House. Mull that over for a moment---then, if you haven't already, start planning your own form of resistance...

[Gore1FL]

31. Chaos agent is upset with chaos. nt

[PortTack]

32. This split is not all bad. Bannon has the ear of most low iq magas. Yes, blame Biden, but that doesn't change

The fact that they know they may very well be on the street and are beginning to beg the Dems to stop this.

I give you the power bills in Alabama

[newdeal2]

33. The enemy of my enemy is my...

How does that go again? I need to take a shower

[Zorro]

35. Trump and the Republicans are jonesing for a John Brown event

Drive someone/some group to respond violently to their cruel and insane policies so they can initiate martial law and use the military against any protests.

Doesn't matter if it's armed MAGAts that spark the conflict.

[Jacson6]

36. Well it looks like MAGA Medicaid Recepients have FAFO.

[GreenWave]

37. Fucking moochers.

[Traildogbob]

38. What the fuck does this infected wart

Care about that MAGA base. He stole millions from them for the Wall scam, is walking away with it, and has railed about pulling every agency out by the roots that supports that idiot base?
He is as responsible for all the shit as Trump and McConnell.
When will the infection of this rotting flesh of a pig take him out? STFU! You did this. I hope the well armed militia idiots come for the Wall scam cash for a little justice, so they can buy an egg and bullets.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

39. Here, and in other conversations,

people keep on saying that none of these young whippersnappers eager to cut Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, anything they're decades away from, don't know and don't care that these things matter. But most, maybe all of them, have elderly mothers who use it. And DON'T just say that the young whippersnappers don't know anyone on those. In reality they do, and will find out quite quickly if that money goes away.

Hell, I'm the only person I know whose Social Security amount is the one third of my income that it's supposed to be. Over the decades the message that you still need to save, has gone away.

[malthaussen]

41. Unreal. Steve Bannon is still under the delusion that he's relevant?

I guess it's hard to face facts at his age.

-- Mal

[Figarosmom]

42. I thought he was

Going to bury musk?

So I guess he doesn't have the chops he thought he had.

I'm thinking musk rigged the election and threatened to say so (telling the FBI that trump forced him to do it )if trump doesn't let him be president.

[Beacool]

43. Bannon may be a despicable creature,

But he's not stupid. Trump's base, the real believers, are working class white folks. Many of them live in the poorer states. A lot of them are older too. They rely on Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and SNAP to survive. Bannon knows that if these programs are cut, these folks will turn on Trump and the GOP.

[Grins]

44. Trump! Musk! Don't listen to that drunken felon!!!

Screw them. The MAGA among them voted for this and would gladly give up their doctors and meds- for America!!!

As a famous American once put it, “Please proceed…”

[kevinore]

47. That only means....

...Musk will have his trolls search through party registrations to match people on Medicaid with members of the Democratic Party.

[BumRushDaShow]

48. That may be tricky in the rural areas

especially in states that allow "unaffiliated" for party as apparently a lot of Democrats don't register as "Democrats" but as some kind of independent or unaffiliated or even as Republican (so they can vote for the "lesser of two loons" in GOP primaries). There is a prevailing "narrative" about how the GOP registrations continue to increase and I think a lot of it is due exactly to the scenario I mentioned (and I have seen a number of DUers who say that this is what they do in their red hell counties).

So except for maybe urban areas, filtering by party ain't gonna work. Which is probably why Bannon is sounding the alarm.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

49. Ketamine head don't care

[33taw]

50. I thought Bannon was going to get rid of Musk before the inauguration?

It seems that his status is no longer relevant since he is not a billionaire.

[DBoon]

51. Musk says anyone getting government assistance is a parasite

Why should he care if parasites suffer?

Besides, their votes won't matter anyway - we will have an all-powerful leader answerable only to himself.

[Evolve Dammit]

52. Ironic that Bannon has to sound like a voice of reason???? Of course he's not, but for today he speaks some truth.

[Emile]

53. Republicans having two daddy's seems woke to me!

[Autumn]

54. Sure they can. You don't get to pick and chose on Medicare cuts.

[mdbl]

55. Bannon seems to think his opinions are useful for the fascists

They aren't. He served their purposes long ago and is now obsolete.