GOP lawmakers running out of options to pay for Trump's costly agenda

Source: The Hill

04/21/25 6:00 AM ET


Republican leaders are rapidly running out of ways to pay for President Trump’s agenda as GOP lawmakers shoot down various proposals to cut spending or increase revenues. Without finding some new ideas, the GOP risks adding trillions of dollars to future deficits by passing Trump’s agenda, something many conservatives are loathe to do.

Outside observers are expressing pessimism the Republicans will land on ideas that have enough support to get passed into law. “I just don’t see them getting the money. There’s no ‘there’ there, to be quite honest about it. If they want to spend money, they’re going to end up putting it on the debt,” said former Sen. Judd Gregg (N.H.), who previously served as the Republican chair of the Senate Budget Committee.

“They’re not going to get it out of tariffs, either. You have [White House trade adviser Peter] Navarro running around saying they’re going to get $600 billion in tariff revenue. That’s absurd. It’s basic economics. You raise the price on it, people stop buying it,” he said. “It’s all a joke, to be honest with you, when it comes to money saving and reducing debt,” he added. “This president doesn’t care too much about debt.”

Maya MacGuineas, the president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, said lawmakers need to steel themselves to political blowback and make significant cuts, even though it will reduce some benefits. “If you take all the big pots of money off the table, it becomes very hard to find enough savings to offset $4, $5 — or more — trillion in tax cuts, let alone bring the debt down, which is the stated goal of many members,” she said.

Read more: https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5255483-trump-agenda-funding-problems/