Biden uses DeSantis’s debate comments to knock Trump on spending

President Biden used Republican presidential candidate and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s comments during the second Republican presidential debate to knock former President Trump’s spending record. 

During Wednesday night’s debate, DeSantis took aim at Trump’s spending policies, arguing that the former president should have attended the debate to defend his record. 

“[Trump] should be on this stage tonight. He owes it to you to defend his record where they added $7.8 trillion to the debt. That set the stage for the inflation that we have now,” DeSantis said. 

In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Biden retweeted a video of DeSantis during the debate, writing: “Couldn’t agree more.” 

Earlier this month, the White House ramped up its attacks against Trump’s economic policies, warning against so-called MAGAnomics to tout Biden’s economic agenda, dubbed “Bidenomics.” 

Bidenomics focuses primarily on curbing inflation, raising job satisfaction and lowering unemployment. 

Stubborn inflation over the past two years and increasing interest rates from the Federal Reserve have prompted criticism of the Biden administration’s economic policies, as national polls show voters still feel little relief at home.