Sen. Rand Paul says he's 'not an absolute no' on the reconciliation package

WASHINGTON — Sen. Rand Paul, a starring Republican professional of the sweeping Trump docket bill, said during an interrogation connected NBC News' "Meet the Press" that helium told President Donald Trump that helium is "not an implicit no" connected the package.

"I talked to the President past evening aft the parade, and we're trying to get to a amended spot successful our conversations," said Paul, R-Ky. "And I've fto him cognize that I'm not an implicit no."

“I don’t person arsenic overmuch occupation with the taxation cuts. I deliberation determination should beryllium much spending cuts, but if they privation my vote, they’ll person to negotiate,” Paul said, noting helium did not privation to ballot to rise the indebtedness ceiling by trillions of dollars.

Republicans are moving to walk the measure done a fund process called reconciliation, which allows them to walk the measure with a elemental majority. Republicans person 53 seats successful the Senate, meaning they tin lone spend to suffer 3 votes if Vice President JD Vance is brought successful to interruption a tie.

Several Republican senators, however, person raised concerns astir the bill's interaction connected the nationalist indebtedness and Medicaid, throwing the bill's aboriginal into question.

Paul has been sharply captious of the Trump-backed “Big Beautiful Bill” due to the fact that it is projected to summation the nationalist shortage by astir $2.4 trillion implicit 10 years, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

The senator said past week that helium had been "uninvited" to a White House picnic typically attended by lawmakers and their families. Paul said that helium believed the White House was trying to "punish" him, calling the determination "petty vindictiveness." Trump aboriginal posted to Truth Social, saying that "of course" Paul was invited to the picnic.

The reconciliation bundle arsenic it stands would summation the indebtedness ceiling. Lawmakers are besides moving up against a deadline this summertime to debar the U.S. defaulting connected its debt. The Treasury Department has asked Congress to rise the indebtedness ceiling by mid-July to debar default.

Asked what it would instrumentality for Paul to ballot for the bill, the legislator said, "separate retired the indebtedness ceiling and person a abstracted ballot connected it."

Paul, a fiscal hawk, has said that portion the "debt ceiling has to spell up," helium wants the ceiling to summation a fewer months astatine a time, "and past we should person a renewed statement astir the debt."

The GOP-led bundle that passed done the House aims to raise the indebtedness ceiling by $4 trillion up of a mid-July deadline. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that the bundle would adhd $2.4 trillion to the nationalist indebtedness implicit the adjacent 10 years.

Trump, however, has called for abolishing the indebtedness limit, saying successful a station past period that it "should beryllium wholly scrapped to forestall an Economic catastrophe." It's 1 of the uncommon areas that the president has recovered communal crushed with wide lawmakers similar Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who has been a vocal proponent of abolishing the limit.

Trump said that the indebtedness bounds was "too devastating to beryllium enactment successful the hands of governmental radical that whitethorn privation to usage it contempt the horrendous effect it could person connected our Country and, indirectly, adjacent the World."

Paul besides addressed Sen. Alex Padilla's detainment successful California past week, erstwhile the California Democrat was forcibly removed from a property league aft trying to question Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

House Speaker Mike Johnson has said that Padilla should beryllium censured for his behaviour during the property league — a measurement that Paul opposed.

"I'm not for censuring. I deliberation that's crazy," Paul said.

Paul said that helium thought the concern "could person ended without the handcuffs," but added that helium did not deliberation determination could beryllium a "get retired of jailhouse free" for "rushing the stage."

Video of the incidental shared with NBC News does not amusement Padilla "rushing" toward Noem. Instead, the legislator identified himself and tried to inquire a question arsenic respective men pushed him retired of the room. The video did not amusement the moments starring up to Padilla's question.