Welcome to The Hill's Technology newsletter {beacon} Technology Technology   The Big Story  Musk backs Johnson for Speaker after funding scuffle Elon Musk threw his weight behind Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), as the top Republican in the House seeks to shore up support ahead of Friday's Speaker vote. © Jose Luis Magana, Associated Press The tech mogul’s vote of confidence followed President-elect Trump’s “Complete & Total” endorsement of Johnson earlier in the day.    “I feel the same way!” Musk wrote in a post on his social platform X. “You have my full support.”    Trump’s and Musk’s backing could be key as Johnson seeks to hold onto his Speakership with a narrow majority. Johnson’s control of the House was thrown into question after a rocky, last-minute push to pass government funding earlier this month.    His initial end-of-year funding package was in part torpedoed by Musk, who launched a daylong crusade against the deal on X, at times sharing or posting misinformation about the bill.    After Trump also came out against the bill, Johnson scrambled to piece together a new deal to avert a government shutdown that appeased the president-elect and the billionaire, who has become one of Trump’s closest allies.    Following the initial funding proposal, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) said he would not support Johnson in the upcoming Speaker vote, and doubled down Monday after Trump's endorsement.   Several other hard-line conservatives, such as House Freedom Caucus Chair Andy Harris (R-Md.) and Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.), have not yet committed to backing Johnson.    Read more in a full report at TheHill.com.   Welcome to The Hill’s Technology newsletter, we're Julia Shapero and Miranda Nazzaro — tracking the latest moves from Capitol Hill to Silicon Valley.   Did someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here.   Essential Reads  How policy will be impacting the tech sector now and in the future:   Chinese hackers breached Treasury Department, agency says Chinese state-sponsored actors hacked into the Treasury Department in early December, accessing unclassified documents from its workstations, the agency said in a letter to lawmakers Monday.  The hackers stole a key from a third-party software service provider, BeyondTrust, and used it to override security and gain access to Treasury Department workstations, according to the letter, which was obtained by The Hill.  The …  Full Story   Trump ally Loomer rails against Musk’s influence: ‘Stage 5 clinger’ Laura Loomer, a close ally of President-elect Trump, railed against another Trump ally, Elon Musk, calling him a “Stage 5 clinger.” Loomer joined former Trump White House adviser Steve Bannon for his “War Room” podcast Monday and weighed in on the ongoing battle with Musk. “I think that a lot of people have a hard time speaking truth to power, and a lot of people are afraid of taking on billionaires,” Loomer said. “He is the …  Full Story   Wall Street Journal backs Trump on H-1B visas: ‘Enlightened nationalism’ The Wall Street Journal backed President-elect Trump’s stance on visas for highly skilled workers amid a contentious debate between Trump’s Silicon Valley supporters and the anti-immigrant contingent of his MAGA base.  Trump came out in support of the H-1B visa program Saturday, siding with his “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) co-Chairs Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy.   “Donald Trump may …  Full Story   The Refresh  News we've flagged from the intersection of tech and other topics:   Crypto groups sue IRS over new reporting rules Several groups representing the cryptocurrency industry are suing the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) over new rules that would establish reporting requirements for decentralized finance, TechCrunch reported.   Nvidia acquires Israeli AI startup Nvidia has completed its acquisition of Run:ai, an Israeli artificial intelligence (AI) startup, after the European Union's antitrust regulator cleared the purchase, Reuters reported.   In Other News  Branch out with other reads on The Hill: Germany accuses Musk of trying to sway election The German government on Monday accused Elon Musk of trying to influence its February election after the world’s wealthiest person penned an op-ed this weekend backing the far-right political party Alternative for Germany (AfD). “It is indeed the case that Elon Musk is trying to influence the federal election through his statement,” government spokesperson Christiane Hoffmann said at a Monday media briefing, according to media … Full Story   Former US lieutenant general warns Musk poses national security risks A former U.S. lieutenant general warned Sunday that Elon Musk, the tech billionaire who has become intricately involved in President-elect Trump’s transition, may pose national security risks due to his ties to China and Russia.  Retired Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré pointed to the Tesla and SpaceX CEO’s business interests in China, as well as his reported conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin.  “The fact that … Full Story   What Others are Reading  Two key stories on The Hill right now: Tensions with Russia rise amid power line sabotage Russia’s connection to the rupture of an undersea cable between Finland and Estonia is raising a new bevy of fears over the sabotage of critical power … Read more What’s next for Texas? 4 major questions looming for the divided state in 2025 Texas is facing a tumultuous 2025, as simmering feuds within the state’s ruling coalition are poised to boil over during its coming legislative … Read more   What Others are Reading  Opinions related to tech submitted to The Hill: Debanking nearly killed tech — but Congress and Trump can save it Happy holidays? Only if you don’t need customer service in America.  The most significant space events for 2024     You're all caught up. See you tomorrow!