Rand Paul: ‘I Cannot Vote To Add More To The Already Massive $20 Trillion Debt’

Senator Rand Paul said Tuesday that he cannot vote to add more to the national debt. The lawmaker wrote in a post on Twitter that “I promised Kentucky to vote against reckless, deficit spending and I will do just that.”

Rand Paul may be one of the few fiscally conservative Republicans in politics today.  Paul’s tweet didn’t suggest he would oppose the GOP tax bill due to deficit concerns.

I cannot in good conscience vote to add more to the already massive $20 trillion debt. I promised Kentucky to vote against reckless, deficit spending and I will do just that. pic.twitter.com/BUYqm91mli

— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) December 12, 2017

The lawmaker clarified in a follow-up tweet that tax cuts “are never the problem.”

Tax cuts — people keeping more of their money — are never the problem. The problem is spending. We should obey our rules, stop the deficit spending, and shrink government.

— Senator Rand Paul (@RandPaul) December 12, 2017

Senators voted Thursday to approve a two-week spending bill that averted a government shutdown. It is unclear how Paul’s stance will affect negotiations to keep the government running beyond December 22. The temporary spending bill that passed Thursday went through overwhelmingly, with 81 voting in support. Which really isn’t a surprise.  The government isn’t going to shut itself down, nor will they willing reduce their size and power.

According to CNBC, the nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation estimates that the Senate’s tax plan would add more than $1 trillion to the federal budget deficit over 10 years. Paul initially supported even deeper tax cuts than the GOP proposed. The White House has said that increased economic growth will pay for the tax cuts.