Pres. Trump Monitoring Harvey As Fiscal Storm Brews In DC
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WASHINGTON (CBSMiami) - A fiscal storm is brewing on Capitol Hill over the debt ceiling as President Donald Trump battles with leaders of his own party.
Meanwhile, the president is also monitoring a storm raging in the Gulf of Mexico.
On Thursday, President Trump hurled criticism at the very two men he needs to get anything done in Congress.
In a series of tweets, he accused Senate Major Leader Rep. Mitch McConnell and House Speaker Paul Ryan of botching efforts to avoid defaulting on the national debt by not including debt ceiling legislation in a Veterans Affairs bill.
I requested that Mitch M & Paul R tie the Debt Ceiling legislation into the popular V.A. Bill (which just passed) for easy approval. They...
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 24, 2017
...didn't do it so now we have a big deal with Dems holding them up (as usual) on Debt Ceiling approval. Could have been so easy-now a mess!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 24, 2017
The only problem I have with Mitch McConnell is that, after hearing Repeal & Replace for 7 years, he failed!That should NEVER have happened!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 24, 2017
The President's attacks on his own party come just a day after the White House and McConnell issued statements pledging to work together. Privately, it's been reported the two are feuding and haven't spoken in two weeks.
On Thursday, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders was asked about the president's criticism.
"I think the relationships are fine. Certainly there are going to be some policy differences, but there are also a lot of shared goals and that's what we're focused on," she said.
Ryan said he's not worried when asked about the debt ceiling, telling Boeing employees "it's going to get done" during a town hall in Washington state.
Congress only has until the end of September to raise the debt ceiling and pass a spending bill to prevent a government shutdown.
Meanwhile, the White House says President Trump is monitoring more pressing matters - Hurricane Harvey. Sanders was asked about the administration's readiness.
"I think that we are in great shape having General Kelly sitting next to the president throughout this process, and probably no better chief of staff for the president during the hurricane season," she said.
President Trump heads to Camp David on Friday where he will monitor the storm throughout the weekend.
