President-elect Donald Trump took aim at former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, describing the debt ceiling suspension approved in 2023 as “one of the stupidest policy decisions made in years.”
But while targeting the former Republican House lawmaker, Trump tempered the criticism by describing McCarthy as a friend and a good person.
“The extension of the debt ceiling by a former Speaker of the House, a good man and a friend of mine, from last September under the Biden administration until June under the Trump administration, will be considered one of the stupidest political decisions “There was no reason to do it – NOTHING WAS GAINED, and we got nothing in return – This is one of the main reasons this presidency has. been lost. This was Biden’s problem, not ours,” Trump said in the post.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and U.S. President Donald Trump attend a bill signing rally with local farmers February 19, 2020 in Bakersfield, California. (David McNew/Getty Images)
“I call it ‘1929’ because Democrats don’t care what our country might be forced into. In fact, they would prefer ‘depression’ as long as it hurts the Republican Party. Democrats must be forced to vote on this sensitive issue NOW, under the Biden administration, not in June, they should be blamed for this potential disaster, not the Republicans,” he added.
A deal passed by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden last year suspended the debt ceiling until Jan. 1, 2025, but Trump demanded that the ceiling be raised before he took office.
“In June 2023, the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 was signed into law, suspending the debt limit until January 1, 2025. On January 2, 2025, the new debt limit will be set at the amount of the outstanding debt debt, subject to the legal ceiling at the end of the previous day,” said Treasurer Sec. Janet Yellen ” wrote in a recent letter to congressional leaders. “Treasury currently expects to reach the new limit between January 14 and 23, at which time it will be necessary for it to begin taking extraordinary measures. I respectfully urge Congress to act to protect the full confidence and the credit of the United States.”
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Earlier this month, Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance pushed for the cap to be raised as part of a tentative government spending proposal.
“The stupidest, most inept thing Congressional Republicans ever did was allow our country to hit the debt ceiling in 2025. It was a mistake and is now a problem that needs to be addressed. remedy,” the two men said in a statement. “Raising the debt ceiling is not a good thing, but we prefer to do it under President Biden. If the Democrats are not cooperating now on the debt ceiling, what makes anyone think that they would do it in June under our administration?”
But the measure that ultimately passed did not increase the cap.
Responding to Trump’s post about McCarthy, Rep. Chip RoyR-Texas, wrote in an article on
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Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, walks through a hallway during a House Republican Conference meeting at the U.S. Capitol December 20, 2024, in Washington, DC (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
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“Democrats voted on the recent debt ceiling increase proposal on December 19: 197 to 2 (their price tag is very high – more spending/taxes),” Roy added. “Yes, we can and must tackle the debt ceiling – through reconciliation in January with majority Republican votes – but with real, meaningful spending cuts.”