Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., said Tuesday that if there are no changes to the reconciliation budget bill that narrowly passed the Republican-controlled House, it might not pass in the GOP-controlled Senate.
The legislation, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, is the centerpiece of President Donald Trump's agenda, tackling tax cuts, funding for defense and border security, and energy reforms.
But Paul and a number of Senate Republicans say the bill doesn't cut enough spending and are opposed to a provision that extends the debt ceiling by $4 trillion. The Senate's budget blueprint would raise the debt ceiling by $5 trillion.
"I think it's close," Paul told reporters on Capitol Hill, including Newsmax congressional correspondent Kilmeny Duchardt, about whether the bill will pass the upper chamber. "There are three or four of us that are very concerned about the spending and the debt ceiling."
The Senate, with a 53-47 GOP majority, can afford to lose only three Republican votes, provided all Democrats vote in opposition, if the bill is to pass. Other moderate Republicans, such as Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, have expressed concerns over Medicaid reforms in the bill.
Trump called out Paul on Tuesday in a post on Truth Social, saying Paul "has very little understanding" of the bill, "especially the tremendous GROWTH that is coming."
"He loves voting 'NO' on everything, he thinks it's good politics, but it's not," Trump wrote.
"Well, I would say that's not actually true," Paul said. "I would say that I've been pretty consistent in my time in the Senate at being opposed to deficit spending. Our country brings in about $5 trillion in revenue and spends $7 trillion.
"I'm not for that. I've never been [for] that from the very beginning. I've been consistent about it. I've pointed it out when we have Republican presidents and we have Democrat presidents.
"So really, there is no change in this and has nothing to do with wanting to vote no. In fact, I'm giving them an opportunity to vote yes. I would vote for it, for most bills perfect or imperfect, that don't include the debt ceiling. All I've said is, strip off the debt ceiling.
"The debt ceiling is a day of shame when the people for big government come down to the wealth center of the House and they vote for the debt. Because they're the ones who vote for the spending. I don't vote for the spending. I want less spending. I want less debt. And I'm not going to vote to expand at $5 trillion."
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Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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