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New York Post
3 days ago
- Business
- New York Post
Fla. Sen. Rick Scott calls for more budget cuts to restore ‘fiscal sanity' into Trump's ‘big, beautiful' bill
A top Senate Republican said Sunday that more spending cuts are needed to infuse 'fiscal sanity' into President Trump's proposed 'big, beautiful' budget bill. Florida Sen. Rick Scott, who serves on the Senate's Budget Committee, told WABC 770 AM radio's 'Cats Roundtable' that his fellow GOPers in the House did not do nearly enough to control spending or help rein in America's explosive debt when they passed the bill last month. He said he and other Senate Republicans will work with the president and House GOPers to remove bloat and confront the debt bomb in a final spending bill. 5 Senator Rick Scott says more spending cuts are needed to infuse 'fiscal sanity' into President Trump's proposed 'big, beautiful' budget bill. Getty Images 'The House worked their tail off. Unfortunately, the House bill cuts the spending over the next 10 years by something like 1.7%. There's a lot more we have to do,' Scott told show host John Catsimatidis. Scott, a two-term senator who previously served as Florida's governor, said the bill passed by the House includes many good things such as renewing the 2017 Trump tax cuts and boosting spending for border security and the military. 'But we have to bring more fiscal sanity to the table,' he said. 'In the next few months, we'll probably hit $37 trillion in debt. And we're running over $1 trillion a year on interest expense.' 'If we leave it just the way it is, we're going to be close to $60 trillion worth of debt in 10 years. We'll never be able to pay for anything else we care about.' He said Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, have shown where spending can be slashed. 'We've got to go line by line through the budget and do everything we can to save money,' Scott said. 'I'm committed to getting this bill done. I believe every Republican I know wants to get this bill done. But we also will want to create some fiscal sanity.' 5 Elon Musk accompanying Scott as they walk through the U.S. Capitol on March 05. Getty Images The proposed One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which is intended to be Trump's signature legislative achievement of the year, features more than $1.5 trillion in spending cuts over a 10-year period but is projected to add between $3 to $4 trillion to the debt during that time frame, according to various estimates. Deficit concerns have prompted backlash from GOP fiscal hawk such as Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), who have expressed opposition to the mega-bill in its current form because of its impact on the deficit. Other Republican critics, such as Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), have voiced reservations over the Medicaid reforms in the mammoth bill. 5 Speaker of the House Mike Johnson speaks to the media after the House narrowly passed a bill forwarding President Donald Trump's agenda on May 22 in Washington, DC. Getty Images 5 Sen. Rand Paul has expressed opposition to the mega-bill in its current form because of its impact on the deficit. AP Last month, Scott told conservative pundit Charlie Kirk, 'Absolutely I'd vote no' on the bill in its current form and, 'If they brought it to the floor right now, there's not a chance it would get to 51 votes.' Republicans hold a 53-47 edge over Democrats in the Senate. Trump has warned that Republicans who threaten to vote against his spending plan are playing into the hands of Democrats. He singled out Paul on Saturday. 'If Senator Rand Paul votes against our Great, Big, Beautiful Bill, he is voting for, along with the Radical Left Democrats, a 68% Tax Increase and, perhaps even more importantly, a first time ever default on US Debt,' Trump wrote on Truth Social. 5 Trump has said Republicans who threaten to vote against his spending plan are playing into the hands of Democrats. AP On a different segment of the Sunday radio show, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) defended the bill passed by one vote in his chamber and vowed that the Senate and House and the White House would agree on a final package by July 4. In response to criticism from Senate budget hawks such as Scott, the speaker insisted the House made historic cuts. 'No other government has ever cut this much in a single piece of legislation,' Johnson said. 'You're talking about more than $1.5 trillion. It's by a factor of two the largest cut that Congress will have ever made. 'Is it enough? No, it's not,' he acknowledged. 'We have $36 trillion in federal debt. But it's important to remember that we did not get into that financial situation overnight. It took many decades. 'It's going to take more than a flip of a switch to turn it around … It's like a large vessel on the sea. It doesn't turn on a dime. You need like a mile of open ocean to do it.' Johnson said the House bill was a 'dramatic shift in the right direction.'
The Hill
3 days ago
- Business
- The Hill
Johnson to Senate fiscal hawks: Will take ‘more than a flip of a switch' to fix US finance
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) defended the House-passed spending package in an interview that aired Sunday while lauding the bill's unprecedented cuts. President Trump has endorsed the legislation, which would add $4 trillion to the national debt. 'We have $36 trillion in federal debt. But it's important to remember that we did not get into that financial situation overnight. It took many decades … It's going to take more than a flip of a switch to turn it around,' Johnson said during an appearance on John Catsimatidis's radio show, 'Cats Roundtable' on WABC 770 AM. Critics, including Elon Musk, have slammed the bill for the debt ceiling increase, alleging it 'undermines' federal spending reductions made by the Department of Government Efficiency. However, Johnson remains confident that the legislation will help the country shift away from past transgressions. 'This is a dramatic shift in the right direction. And it's just the beginning,' Johnson said. 'We're going to have more of this in the Republican Congress under President Trump's leadership to get us out of the debt mess that we're in.' Republicans are pushing to have the text approved in the Senate prior to the Fourth of July, although they have received pushback from Democrats over Medicaid reforms set to leave millions without access to healthcare. 'Everybody, take a deep breath. Look at the legislation. You're going to find that you're very much in favor of what we're doing here,' Johnson told Catsimatidis. 'If we do not clean the system up, if we do not eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse, these programs will become insolvent, and they will not be there for the people who desperately need and deserve it. We're doing the right thing here,' he added.
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
RNC chair pressures Senate GOP ‘to deliver' on Trump's ‘big, beautiful bill'
Republican National Committee (RNC) chairman Michael Whatley encouraged Senate Republicans to advance the House-approved spending bill despite the upper chamber's concerns. 'We've seen the House deliver on the 'big, beautiful bill.' We need the Senate to do the same,' Whatley said during a Sunday appearance on John Catsimatidis's radio show, 'Cats Roundtable' on WABC 770 AM. 'I think we're going to have a lot of time to discuss over the next month what the Senate needs to do to get this bill done,' he added. Whatley said the bill's ability to succeed will help set the party up for the approaching 2026 midterm elections. 'In the House we're going to have a five-seat majority going into the [2026] election. There has never been an election with a five-seat majority for either party going into it. We have our work cut out for us there,' Whatley said. 'But if the economy is strong, and the Republicans stay united, and the Democrats continue to double-down on stupid, which is what they're doing every single day … then we're going to be in a position to expand that majority in the House and hopefully hold our own in the Senate,' the RNC chair continued. Some Senate Republicans have indicated they will not back the bill in its current form. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) has pushed back on Medicaid reform while Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) has questioned the increase to the debt ceiling limit. Several other senators have also expressed concerns about Medicaid cuts. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), Former Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) and President Trump have encouraged senators to approve the 'big, beautiful bill' in a timely manner. 'It blocks a huge tax increase, it creates much better regulatory environment. It takes out a great deal of the waste in government. It's not perfect. Look. We balanced the budget for four straight years for the only time in the last century, but we didn't do it overnight. We didn't do it the first or second year,' Gingrich said during his Friday night appearance on Fox News' 'Jesse Waters Primetime.' 'You have to chip away at these things. Get the best you can plan to come back again next year or come back this fall on the appropriations bills, but keep moving,' the former House speaker told guest host Kayleigh McEnany. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
25-05-2025
- Business
- The Hill
RNC chair pressures Senate GOP ‘to deliver' on Trump's ‘big, beautiful bill'
Republican National Committee (RNC) chairman Michael Whatley encouraged Senate Republicans to advance the House-approved spending bill despite the upper chamber's concerns. 'We've seen the House deliver on the 'big, beautiful bill.' We need the Senate to do the same,' Whatley said during a Sunday appearance on John Catsimatidis's radio show, 'Cats Roundtable' on WABC 770 AM. 'I think we're going to have a lot of time to discuss over the next month what the Senate needs to do to get this bill done,' he added. Whatley said the bill's ability to succeed will help set the party up for the approaching 2026 midterm elections. 'In the House we're going to have a five-seat majority going into the [2026] election. There has never been an election with a five-seat majority for either party going into it. We have our work cut out for us there,' Whatley said. 'But if the economy is strong, and the Republicans stay united, and the Democrats continue to double-down on stupid, which is what they're doing every single day … then we're going to be in a position to expand that majority in the House and hopefully hold our own in the Senate,' the RNC chair continued. Some Senate Republicans have indicated they will not back the bill in its current form. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) has pushed back on Medicaid reform while Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) has questioned the increase to the debt ceiling limit. Several other senators have also expressed concerns about Medicaid cuts. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), Former Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) and President Trump have encouraged senators to approve the 'big, beautiful bill' in a timely manner. 'It blocks a huge tax increase, it creates much better regulatory environment. It takes out a great deal of the waste in government. It's not perfect. Look. We balanced the budget for four straight years for the only time in the last century, but we didn't do it overnight. We didn't do it the first or second year,' Gingrich said during his Friday night appearance on Fox News' 'Jesse Waters Primetime.' 'You have to chip away at these things. Get the best you can plan to come back again next year or come back this fall on the appropriations bills, but keep moving,' the former House speaker told guest host Kayleigh McEnany.
New York Post
18-05-2025
- Business
- New York Post
McCarthy rips GOP hardliners for ‘real misstep' over ‘One Big Beautiful Bill' delay
GOP former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Sunday bashed the Republican lawmakers who blocked a bid to advance President Trump's 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act' last week. McCarthy accused the fiscal-hawk pols of prioritizing their own interests and warned that it was a 'real misstep' as the rest of the party pushes to get Trump's sweeping marquee agenda package through Congress. 'The stock market seems like it is moving up. Now, if Congress can start doing the things that President Trump's doing, it would even help us more,' McCarthy told 'Cats Roundtable' on WABC 770 AM. '[It] was a real misstep on the Republicans' part, in the budget side, that four of them looked out for themselves instead of moving the bill along, reconciliation.' On Friday, five Republicans — Chip Roy of Texas, Ralph Norman of South Carolina, Josh Brecheen of Oklahoma, Andrew Clyde of Georgia and Lloyd Smucker of Pennsylvania — voted against advancing the bill out of the House Budget Committee. GOP former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is knocking some Republicans for failing to advance the 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act' on Friday. NurPhoto via Getty Images Smucker later attributed his vote to procedural reasons to ensure the committee could take up consideration of the bill again. The other four reps cited various concerns that the package didn't do enough to rein in government spending, and some of them pushed for adjustments such as implementing the bill's Medicaid work requirements faster. Last week, various committees in the House of Representatives rolled out legislative text for key components of the 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act,' and the Budget Committee was tasked with stitching it all together. Once the proposal clears the Budget Committee, then GOP leadership can begin moving it through the Rules Committee and eventually to a floor vote. The 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act' features an extension of Trump's 2017 tax cuts, no taxes on tips,, no taxes on overtime pay, an increased tax deduction for seniors, beefed-up border security and bolstered energy supplies, among other things. McCarthy, speaking on the radio show, also seemingly took a pot shot at the leadership of his successor, House Speaker Mike Johnson's (R-La.). Johnson ascended to the top House post when McCarthy was ousted in a GOP revolt in late 2023. 'What really shows is, once President Trump gets back in the country, I mean, poor President Trump is being the president [and] the speaker at the same time, I think we'll get that bill through,' McCarthy chided. House Speaker Mike Johnson is dealing with a razor-thin House GOP majority. CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images GOP leadership has been negotiating with Republican holdouts, trying to advance the signature legislation out of the House Budget Committee. Republicans are planning to reconvene the Budget Committee late Sunday around 10 p.m. to consider advancing the bill after compromises have been made. 'I think the president will be back in and really looking to these members to get the job done, because if they don't get the job done, your taxes go up, and that's not going to happen,' McCarthy said. '[The comprehensive bill] has a lot of the promises the president made about no tax on tips and others, and it will just help unleash the economy because it would bring security and stability.'
