President Joe Biden slammed the House Freedom Caucus over its debt ceiling proposal on Friday.
The comment came at the end of the president's prepared remarks on the economy, which he insisted is strong even amid high inflation.
FREEDOM CAUCUS REVEALS LIST OF DEMANDS IN DEBT CEILING FIGHT AFTER BIDEN BUDGET RELEASED
"Members of the House Freedom Caucus would consider voting to raise the debt ceiling contingent upon the enactment of legislation," Biden said. "Do you know what the essence of the enactment of that legislation is? Cut all spending other than defense by 25%."
Biden read from a sheet of paper he said staff had handed to him as he walked in, though he later put it down as he spoke.
"Twenty-five percent across the board. That means cops, firefighters, it means healthcare, that's just what they call discretionary spending," the president said. "And what kind of surprised me, they want to make sure we don't have enough IRS agents."
Biden slams Freedom Caucus’ new debt ceiling proposal, which demands deep spending cuts far beyond what GOP leadership has so far endorsed:
— The Recount (@therecount) March 10, 2023
“Cut all spending other than defense by 25%... That means cops, firefighters... health care... We just have a very different value set.” pic.twitter.com/3ZZQGBiI5i
The Freedom Caucus revealed its list of demands in the debt ceiling fight during a Friday morning press conference.
The demands target a number of Democratic-led proposals as being “wasteful” and overtly partisan. Their plan calls for spending cuts on an array of issues that, if met, would open the door for caucus members to “consider” raising the debt ceiling.
“If you want to save America, you have to shrink Washington. You must attack the bureaucracy,” said Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ). “This plan put forth by the Freedom Caucus today is a blueprint, a baseline. It should not be the end-all; it is a baseline to shrinking Washington and not just growing America, but saving America.”
But based on the president's remarks, those demands will not go over well inside the West Wing.
"The House Freedom Caucus’s proposal would be a gut-punch to the American middle class and wouldn’t cut the deficit," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement afterward, calling the lawmakers "extreme MAGA House Republicans."
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Biden concluded by saying the proposal showcases the vast differences between himself and Freedom Caucus members.
"You know those IRS agents we had? They're going to check on the accounts of the super wealthy, which requires a lot of accounting," Biden said. "They want to get rid of them. I don't know, we just have a very different value set."