Latest news with #RandPaul
Fox News
21 minutes ago
- Business
- Fox News
Trump criticizes Rand Paul over tax bill opposition: 'Votes no on everything'
President Donald Trump on Tuesday criticized Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., for opposing his "big, beautiful bill." "Rand Paul has very little understanding of the BBB, especially the tremendous GROWTH that is coming. He loves voting 'NO' on everything, he thinks it's good politics, but it's not. The BBB is a big WINNER!!!" Trump wrote on TRUTH Social. The president added, "Rand votes NO on everything, but never has any practical or constructive ideas. His ideas are actually crazy (losers!). The people of Kentucky can't stand him. This is a BIG GROWTH BILL!" Paul is among a group of at least four Republican senators who have expressed apprehension over Trump's "big, beautiful bill" due to the budget package's projected increase in the national debt. The White House has framed the bill as a solution to four years of failures under former President Joe Biden. Sens. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, Rick Scott of Florida, and Mike Lee of Utah, three other Republicans in the upper chamber, have also shared concerns about the bill's fiscal implications. Paul told Breitbart News on Monday that while he believes the left is "adrift," most Republicans are shying away from intra-party debates on certain issues, similarly to how Democrats acted after former President Barack Obama's re-election win. Paul reportedly said he supports "a lot" of Trump's budget package but disagrees with "the additional $5 trillion in debt" the senator claims is attached to the bill. "That's a hard place for me as I support much of what's in the bill, tax cuts, spending cuts, plus more spending cuts if we can get them. But I can't reconcile myself to adding $5 trillion in debt, raising the debt ceiling," Paul said. The senator told Breitbart the debt is going to be $2.2 trillion this year and Republicans have largely continued Biden-era spending levels. "They're anticipating $5 trillion in two years, and that means next year's deficit that some people are saying it's going to grow to over $3 trillion a year again," Paul said. The senator separately expressed to the Associated Press that he told Trump this would be the first time in recent history that Republicans would "own" the debt ceiling if an increase of the nation's debt limit was included in the GOP's sweeping tax and spending package. Paul reportedly added in the Breitbart interview that his opposition to portions of the "big, beautiful bill" are meant to preserve the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)'s progress down the road. "My fear is that when this bill passes that the ramifications a year out, two years out, will be, 'My goodness, what happened to DOGE? What happened to the spending cuts? Why is the deficit so big still?'" he said. "So I am working very hard to make sure there is still at least a part of the party — and it doesn't have to be anti-Donald Trump because I'm for him in so many ways — but it also means people still have to stand up and present their own ideas of what they're for." "I do support President Trump and I support most of the bill," Rand also wrote on X, explaining his position. "I'm his biggest defender on foreign policy. But at the same time I want conservative government so I have to fight for what I believe in." Trump and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-South Dakota, met at the White House at a critical moment Monday as senators returned to begin negotiations over the president's big tax breaks and spending cuts package. Thune said that GOP senators are "on track" to have the package approved by their July 4 deadline. But Thune also acknowledged the long road ahead as senators grind through private talks over changes to put their own stamp on the House-passed bill. Thune told the Senate floor on Monday that Republicans' priority is "extending tax relief for hardworking Americans and strengthening our border, energy, and national security." Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., meanwhile, says Trump told him in a call he "wants to make sure" the Senate doesn't cut Medicaid benefits, according to the AP. The Missouri Republican has been working to strip steep healthcare cuts from the House bill, beyond work requirements for some aid recipients. Hawley said Trump told him the senators could instead raise revenue by closing the so-called carried interest tax loophole used by wealthy filers.
Daily Mail
42 minutes ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Trump puts 'crazy loser' Republican on blast after he threatened to tank his 'big beautiful bill'
President Donald Trump is blasting Republican Sen. Rand Paul over his opposition to the president's government spending package. Trump is piling on MAGA attacks on his fellow Republican this week as he strives to get his signature 'big beautiful bill' through the Senate after it passed the House. 'Rand Paul has very little understanding of the BBB, especially the tremendous GROWTH that is coming. He loves voting 'NO' on everything, he thinks it's good politics, but it's not. The BBB is a big WINNER!!!' Trump wrote on Truth Social. 'Rand votes NO on everything, but never has any practical or constructive ideas. His ideas are actually crazy (losers!). The people of Kentucky can't stand him. This is a BIG GROWTH BILL!' Trump added in a following post. Shortly after Trump's attack on Tuesday, Paul took to the airwaves to defend his position, and explain what can be done to the GOP spending package to earn his support. New additions to the the national debt were a non-starter for Paul, who notes that he does want to see the 2017 tax cuts made permanent. Paul also described the current $5 trillion in new debt as 'Biden spending levels.' 'This will be the largest increase in the debt ceiling ever in our history. We've never raised the debt ceiling without meeting the target. You can say it doesn't directly add to the debt but if you reach the ceiling you'll meet that. We won't discuss it for a year or two. I think it is a terrible idea to do this' Paul told Fox News. On CBS' Face the Nation over the weekend, Paul told host Margaret Brennan that the math in Trump's 'big beautiful bill' 'doesn't really add up.' 'Well, the math doesn't really add up. One of the things this big and beautiful bill is, is it's a vehicle for increasing spending for the military and for the border. It's about $320 billion in new spending,' Paul said. President Donald Trump via Truth Social, Tuesday June 3rd, 2025 During a Monday afternoon appearance on Fox News ' America Reports, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt called out Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) for opposing the GOP spending package, which is soon headed to the Senate after it passed the House before Memorial Day. 'Well, anyone who votes against the one big, beautiful bill including Senator Rand Paul, will be voting for a tax hike of more than $4 trillion on the American people and their voters will know about it,' Leavitt warned. 'That is unacceptable to Republican voters and all voters across the country who elected this president in a Republican majority to get things done on Capitol Hill,' Leavitt continued. Paul was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2010, long before Trump's foray into politics, and was reelected to a third term in 2022 during Joe Biden 's presidency. Paul is not up for election again until 2028. Kentucky 's other Senate seat is up as an open seat in the 2026 midterms election. The commonwealth's senior senator and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is not running for another term. Paul has been sharing his perspective against the GOP spending package this week, angering the MAGA camp. Paul compared the spending package with the funds anticipated to be saved by spending cuts pushed for by the Depart of Government Efficiency (DOGE). 'That's more than all the DOGE cuts that we found so far. So, the increase in spending put into this bill exceeds the DOGE cuts. When you look just at the border wall, they have $46.5 billion for the border wall,' Paul said on Face the Nation. He went one: 'Well, the current estimate from the CBP is $6.5 million per mile. So, if you did 1,000 miles, that's $6.5 billion, but they have $46 billion. So they've inflated the cost of the wall eight fold,' Paul continued. The math doesn't add up. I'm not supporting a bill that increases the debt by $5T. I refuse to support maintaining Biden spending levels. — Rand Paul (@RandPaul) June 3, 2025 Kentuckians sent me here to fight reckless debt. I will not support a $5T increase to our deficit. — Rand Paul (@RandPaul) June 3, 2025 'So, there's a lot of new spending that has to be counteracted. But essentially, this is a bill by the military industrial complex advocates who are padding the military budget. There's going to be a lot of extra money.' 'Look, the President has essentially stopped the border flow without- without new money and without any new legislation. So, I think they're asking for too much money. And in the end, the way you add it up to see if it actually is going to save money or add money, is how much debt are they going to borrow? 5 trillion over two years, an enormous amount' Paul concluded. A May 20th analysis from the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that the federal deficit would increase by $3.8 trillion due to tax changes. The American people, like the Great People of Kentucky, do not support Biden spending levels and $5T in new debt. Therefore, I will not. It's simple. — Rand Paul (@RandPaul) June 1, 2025 Speaking with Fox News Sunday host Shannon Bream on May 25th, Paul shared further reservations about the increase to the national debt, while also touting his past support for lowering taxes. 'You know, the bigger a bill, the more it includes, the more difficult it is to get everybody to agree to things. I supported the tax cuts in 2017. I support making them permanent. So, I support that part of the bill,' Paul noted. WATCH: @RandPaul explains why he's a no on the current House GOP's version of Trump's 'big, beautiful bill'. — Fox News Sunday (@FoxNewsSunday) May 25, 2025 'I support spending cuts. I think the cuts currently in the bill are wimpy and anemic, but I still would support the bill even with wimpy and anemic cuts if they weren't going to explode the debt,' Paul argued. Later in the conversation, Paul also warned that 'the deficit is a threat to our country. I think it's the greatest threat to our national security', adding that the United States brings in 'about $5 trillion in revenue', while spending $7 trillion.
Bloomberg
2 hours ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Trump Blasts Rand Paul as ‘Crazy' for Resisting Tax-Cut Bill Over Debt Limit
President Donald Trump attacked fiscal conservative Rand Paul as 'crazy' Tuesday morning as he pressed reluctant Republican senators to move forward swiftly with his massive tax and spending package. The Kentucky senator earlier said on CNBC that he wouldn't vote for the president's signature legislation because it would increase the legal US debt limit.
Newsweek
2 hours ago
- Business
- Newsweek
Trump Torches Rand Paul: 'Actually Crazy'
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. President Donald Trump lashed out at Sen. Rand Paul, a libertarian Republican from Kentucky, over his criticism of the big tax bill. "Rand Paul has very little understanding of the BBB, especially the tremendous GROWTH that is coming," Trump posted to Truth Social on Tuesday morning. "He loves voting "NO" on everything, he thinks it's good politics, but it's not. The BBB is a big WINNER!!!" BBB is a reference to the One Big Beautiful Bill, the sprawling tax-and-spending centerpiece of Trump's domestic agenda, which narrowly passed the House and is now heading to the Senate. "Rand votes NO on everything, but never has any practical or constructive ideas," Trump continued in another post. "His ideas are actually crazy (losers!). The people of Kentucky can't stand him. This is a BIG GROWTH BILL!" This is a breaking news story. More to follow.
CNBC
3 hours ago
- Business
- CNBC
Sen. Rand Paul on reconciliation bill: I will not vote to raise the debt ceiling by $5 trillion
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) joins 'Squawk Box' to discuss the fate of the House-passed reconciliation package, why he's against the bill, addressing the national debt, changes he'd like to see to the bill, and more.
