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.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.