Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) criticized the Republican package of President Trump’s legislative priorities as a “slap in the face” for proposing to add trillions of dollars to the national debt.
“The problem is it’s asking conservatives, like myself, to raise the debt ceiling $5 trillion. That’s historic. No one’s ever raised the debt ceiling that much,” Paul said in an interview with Fox News’s Ainsley Earhardt Thursday, when asked what it would take for him to support the bill.
“It will be a record for Congress to raise the debt 5 trillion dollars,” he continued. “But, also it indicates that this year the deficit will be over 2 trillion, but it means they’re anticipating close to 3 trillion for the next year.”
Paul questioned the purpose of raising the debt ceiling by $5 trillion, as the Senate version of the budget blueprint proposed, when Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) purports to have made significant spending cuts already.
“It’s really a slap in the face at those of us who are excited about Elon Musk and DOGE and all the cuts,” Paul said.
“Where are the cuts? If the cuts are real, why are we going to borrow five trillion?” he continued.
The blueprint for the president’s so-called “big, beautiful bill” was approved last month by Republican majorities in both chambers, even though Paul voted in opposition. The bill itself is now working its way through the House but still must overcome significant hurdles within the party before it makes its way over to the Senate, where it also will likely face challenges.
The president said in an interview with Fox News’s Sean Hannity this week that he’s confident his bill will get over the finish line, saying “Republicans are very unified” and suggesting Democrats might even vote for the bill.
