Trump on debt deal: ‘We should have gone through a little more pain’

Former President Trump took aim at the debt ceiling deal Thursday, one day after it passed the House amid Republican criticism.

Without directly mentioning the debt limit deal during his speech in Des Moines, Iowa, Trump suggested that Republicans should have gone through a “little more pain” to get a deal done.

“We should have gone through a little more pain, perhaps, over the last few days to get maybe a deal done. If you understand what I mean. But that’s ok,” he said.

The former president is in Iowa for the second time this campaign, after canceling his outdoor rally in the state scheduled for earlier this month due to tornado warnings in the area.

Trump had remained silent since President Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) announced a deal to raise the debt ceiling last week, while his competitors in the 2024 GOP primary pool have voiced opposition to the deal. He said earlier this month, before the deal was struck, that Republicans “should not make a deal on the debt ceiling unless they get everything they want.”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who is seen as Trump’s top competitor in the polls, said Monday that “our country will still be careening towards bankruptcy” if the deal passed. Other presidential hopefuls, including former Vice President Mike Pence and conservative entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, have also bashed the deal.

A cohort of conservative GOP House members vowed to oppose the deal earlier this week, but it ultimately passed the House 314-117, with about two-thirds of the Republican conference voting for it. Some conservative members have also proposed bringing to the floor a motion to oust McCarthy from his role as Speaker.

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