'I didn't finish': CNN anchor spars with GOP rep about cutting entitlements

CNN's Brianna Keilar pushed Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) Tuesday about Elon Musk's remarks on cutting up to $700 billion from Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.

"This number, it's very big. And you know the sensitivities around tackling entitlement cuts, but any experts ..." Keliar began before Burchett interrupted.

"Ma'am, but you have to ask yourself, why are these people so opposed to finding waste, abuse, and fraud in these departments because the money would get back to the people in need?"

"I'm not done. That's not the question. I didn't finish, I didn't finish my question," Keilar spoke over him.

She finally interjected that experts say "you can't get that number of the cuts that he's talking about. They say you can't balance the budget, which is obviously something Republicans really want to do, without being honest about cutting these entitlements. And yet it seems something that Republicans are are reticent to speak honestly about that that's what would have to be done."

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Burchett answered, "You're asking the people that created the problem, did they make a mistake? And of course they're going to tell you, 'No, we didn't make a mistake, this is crazy.' Well, nobody imagined any of these millions and billions of dollars that are going out."

"I think these are people who are actually interested in reducing some of these estimates, these are people who are interested in being fiscally conservative," Keilar pushed back.

Burchett went on to say, "what does it hurt" to let Musk try to find the trillion dollars in waste, abuse, and fraud he wants to go after. He then suggested people "in both parties" were afraid of what Musk might expose.

"They're going to get caught with their hand in the cookie jar, and some of these people need to be in handcuffs because Medicaid and Medicare should be a sacred group of people. And we should not be stealing from any, any group that is trying to help that community."

He then accused CNN of being against Musk's mission.

"I'm just trying to do some math with you," Keilar said.

"Ma'am, you all don't support one dadgum cut in any of this stuff."

"I'm looking at the numbers that DOGE has put out themselves...that's just math, congressman."

Watch the clip below via CNN.