Picnic Or Not, Rand Paul Reveals The One Thing That Will Secure His Vote For Trump Tax Bill

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) continues to be a prominent holdout against President Donald Trump’s ambitious “Big, Beautiful Bill,” drawing frustration from the White House. However, the Kentucky Republican – who was reportedly disinvited and then reinvited to the annual White House picnic – has indicated he could ultimately support the legislation if a key condition is met: removing the debt ceiling increase from the bill.

In a Tuesday interview with Charlie Kirk, Paul voiced concerns over the federal government’s reliance on omnibus spending bills or continuing resolutions, calling them a “terrible way to run government.” Paul also criticized GOP leadership in both the House and Senate for failing to deliver on promises of fiscal responsibility, accusing them of prioritizing political expediency over conservative principles that they claim to uphold.

„It’s going to be an omnibus or a continuing resolution. It’ll be all the bills crammed together. It’s a terrible way to run government.But then we would ask them at that point, all right, you promised us you were going to do better. And once again, this isn’t an accusation against the president,” Paul told Kirk. „This is an accusation against GOP leadership on both sides.I’m saying, I don’t believe them or trust them. So, in three months, we’d get another bite at the apple and we’d say, all right, what have you done? And they would say, oh, we’re going to do it next time. And that’s what they say.”

„Right now, from Speaker Johnson, we hear he’s going to be conservative after the 2026 elections. The Senate has made it not just $4 trillion in borrowing, they want to do $5 trillion in borrowing, and they’ve explicitly told us it’s to get through the 2026 elections without talking about the debt,” the senator added. All of these things were conservatives would oppose, but now they, because they support the president so much, they’re willing to look the other way. I like the president. I like him personally.”

Paul then took aim at the recurring pattern of massive, last-minute spending bills that combine multiple legislative priorities into a single package. “It’s all the bills crammed together,” he said, arguing that this approach lacks transparency and accountability. He expressed frustration with Republican leaders who, he claims, repeatedly defer meaningful reforms with vague promises of action after future elections. “Right now, from Speaker Johnson, we hear he’s going to be conservative after the 2026 elections,” Paul remarked skeptically.

„I was his biggest defender against two impeachments. We’ll do it again. I’ve supported his nominees, but I’m just not going to go against all principle to support $5 trillion in borrowing because I don’t know who we would be or where we would be of a movement if nobody opposes this,” Paul said. „I’ve told them I will vote for the bill. Separate out the debt ceiling so I don’t have to give up all of my principles and I’ll vote for the bill.„

Despite Paul’s opposition, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) remains optimistic that Congress can pass the sweeping bill by July 4, despite ongoing challenges in the Senate. “We certainly hope, I believe, we can still meet that,” Johnson told reporters Monday. “It’s up to the Senate, the bill’s in the Senate’s hands now. But I spoke with Leader Thune as recently as last night, he’s feeling very optimistic.”

“I think it’s gonna go pretty quickly,” Trump added.

Meanwhile as noted above, Rand accused the White House of „immaturity” and „petty vindictiveness” on Wednesday after he and his family were disinvited from the annual White House picnic held with members of both parties.

„The level of immaturity is beyond words,” said Paul, adding that he’s „lost a lot of respect” for Trump.

„It’s just incredibly petty,” he told CNN Wednesday evening. „I’m arguing from a true belief and worry that our country is mired in debt and getting worse. And they choose to react by uninviting my grandson to the picnic. I don’t know. I just think it really makes me lose a lot of respect I once had for Donald Trump.”

Paul: “I like Donald Trump, but when they want to act this way, it’s where they begin to lose a lot of America who just wonders, ‘Why does everything have to descend to this level?’”

Also takes a whack at Stephen Miller for “casually talking about getting rid of habeas corpus” pic.twitter.com/0ojRjYIIV9

— Manu Raju (@mkraju) June 12, 2025

On Thursday, however, Trump posted on Truth Social: „Of course Senator Rand Paul and his beautiful wife and family are invited to the BIG White House Party tonight. He’s the toughest vote in the history of the U.S. Senate, but why wouldn’t he be?”