(Julianna Frieman, Headline USA) CNN’s Scott Jennings ripped Democrat strategist Julia Roginsky on Thursday over her conflicting argument that Elon Musk is puppeteering President-elect Donald Trump, who Democrats repeatedly characterized as an uncontrollable dictator.
Jennings told NewsNight panelists it’s a great move for Musk to give the American people information they otherwise would not have known about the federal government, referencing the Department of Government Efficiency head’s social media campaign that ultimately killed the 1,547-page federal spending bill.
Your elected representatives have heard you and now the terrible bill is dead. The voice of the people has triumphed!
VOX POPULI
VOX DEI— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 18, 2024
Roginsky responded, “Elon Musk is doing this to gin up people to call their congressmen or congresswoman and to vote against something Elon Musk doesn’t want them to vote for because it doesn’t directly benefit Elon Musk. Let’s be very clear.”
Jennings asked the Democrat strategist how she knows Musk is only in it for himself, casting doubt on her claims.
“You’re making an allegation. It’s a serious allegation,” Jennings told her. “You’re essentially alleging corruption.”
NEW: Scott Jennings hilariously mocks CNN panelist when she can’t decide whether Trump’s a dictator or merely a puppet for Elon Musk.
Wait till you hear her answer at the end.
JULIE ROGINSKY: “Elon Musk is puppeteering Donald Trump and every other member of Congress that he… pic.twitter.com/8uy8kl9Glq
— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) December 20, 2024
Roginsky told the conservative CNN panelist she was not accusing Musk of corruption but reiterated her assertion that Musk is lobbying for policies beneficial to his X, SpaceX and Tesla businesses.
“That’s a fact. He’s a businessman. He’s not here as a staffer. If you’re a staffer, if you’re working on the Hill, then he should go work on the Hill,” Roginsky said.
Omitting that Trump gave DOGE a July 4, 2026 deadline, Roginsky said Musk and DOGE partner Vivek Ramaswamy should fully envelop themselves into the bureaucracy if they want to affect Trump administration policy. She called the pair “unpaid advisers.”
“For that reason, Elon Musk is puppeteering Donald Trump and every other member of Congress that he wants to,” the Democrat strategist said, prompting CNN host Abby Phillip to agree that Trump did not do “anything to dissuade people” from thinking that.
A baffled Jennings called out Roginsky for arguing afoul of the Democrats’ 2024 campaign talking point that Trump would govern as a dictator without any safeguards.
“In October, the principe Democratic argument was, ‘Donald Trump is going to be a dictator.’ And today it’s, ‘Donald Trump is just being puppeteered by other people. Which is it?” Jennings shot back at Roginsky, who responded, “it could be both.”
Julianna Frieman is a freelance writer published by the Daily Caller, Headline USA, The Federalist, and the American Spectator. Follow her on Twitter at @JuliannaFrieman.
