The first Republican presidential debate is fast approaching on Aug. 23, when candidates will hope to close the gap on former President Donald Trump and separate from the rest of the pack. In this series, Up For Debate, the Washington Examiner will look at a key issue or policy every day up until debate day and where key candidates stand. Today’s story will examine spending and debt.
Trump and his allies are quick to point out that much of that came as a result of the pandemic, an unprecedented event that upended the country in the lead-up to the 2020 election. Although quiet about the deal and negotiations for some time, Trump was among the candidates who expressed misgivings about the plan. During a CNN town hall, the former president also thought Republicans should go to hard-line tactics, even default, in order to exact spending concessions from Democrats.
“He promised to eliminate the national debt when he ran for president. He added almost $8 trillion,” DeSantis recently said. “In Florida, we've actually reduced our state debt since I've been governor by almost 25%.”"He attacked me for voting against an amnesty that he was proposing when he was president. I opposed the amnesty. He tried to do a two million person amnesty. He promised to eliminate the national debt when he ran for… pic.twitter.
Unlike Trump, DeSantis is open to enacting changes to the Social Security and Medicare programs, although he has said that any changes would not affect seniors. During a recent interview with Fox News, he suggested changes to Social Security could affect younger generations. Sen. Tim Scott to vote against debt limit bill. @SenatorTimScott joins us to discuss, WATCH: pic.twitter.com/KTYc0oHErtFormer South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who also served as Trump’s ambassador to the United Nations, has also emphasized the need for the federal government to get its spending under control and rein in the deficit.