Trump: Impeach McConnell on Debt Ceiling Collusion (Newsmax)
By Solange Reyner | Thursday, 03 November 2022 01:14 PM EDT
Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday accused Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of working with Democrats to blow up the debt ceiling because "they have something on him" and called for McConnell to be impeached.
"It's crazy what's happening with this debt ceiling. Mitch McConnell keeps allowing it to happen. They ought to impeach Mitch McConnell if he allows that," Trump said during a radio interview on the conservative John Fredericks radio show. "Frankly, something has to be — they have something on him. How he approves this thing is incredible."
Senators cannot be impeached but can be expelled from the chamber with a two-thirds vote.
Trump and McConnell have been feuding since the 2020 presidential election when McConnell blasted Trump for a "disgraceful dereliction of duty" on Jan. 6, 2021, as rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol.
Since, Trump has made McConnell, to whom he refers as the "Old Crow," a frequent target of his complaints and has repeatedly called for him to be ousted.
Several Republicans, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., say they back the notion of lifting the debt limit next year as a leverage to get Democrats to agree to spending cuts, reports Politico.
The debt ceiling is a legal limit on the total amount of outstanding U.S. federal debt. The U.S. Treasury is expected to reach its mandated $31.4 trillion borrowing limit in 2023, and Republicans ranging from hardline conservatives to moderates see that as an opportunity to curb President Joe Biden's spending on Democratic initiatives such as climate change and new social programs.
But Biden two weeks ago said he will "not yield" to any demands to entitlement programs like Medicare and Social Security in exchange for avoiding a standoff over the debt ceiling.
"Let me be really clear: I will not yield," Biden said. "I will not cut Social Security. I will not cut Medicare, no matter how hard they work at it."
Information from Reuters was used in this report.