Deficit hawks on Friday encouraged President Trump to veto the $1.3 trillion spending bill passed by Congress after the president tweeted that he was considering doing so.
In a tweet, Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) said the spending levels in the bill “without any offsets are grotesque.”
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“Please do, Mr. President. I am just down the street and will bring you a pen,” Corker tweeted Friday. “The spending levels without any offsets are grotesque, throwing all of our children under the bus. Totally irresponsible.”
House Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) also encouraged a veto of the measure while asking the president to “negotiate a better deal for the forgotten men and women of America.”
Trump tweeted Friday morning that he’s considering a veto of the spending bill because it did not include provisions aimed at helping recipients of the Deferred Actions for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program or provide funding for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) echoed Corker and Meadows, calling the bill a “sad excuse for legislation.”
The tweet comes after the White House said Thursday that Trump would sign the bill.
Corker, who at times has butted heads with Trump, voted against the spending bill early Friday, while Freedom Caucus members were among the 90 House GOP lawmakers who voted against the measure in the chamber on Thursday.
Deficit hawks said it was hypocritical for Republicans to push the type of massive spending bill they fought Democrats over during the Obama administration.
However, Corker and Freedom Caucus members did vote for the final version of the GOP tax law in December, which is estimated to cost more than $1 trillion over a decade.