Rep. Tom Reed (R-NY) claims he is very concerned about federal spending and wants to see major cuts. But he has no problem with Donald Trump’s plan to borrow $12 billion for a farm bailout to mitigate the disastrous economic impact of his tariffs.

When Reed first ran for Congress in 2010, he talked a lot about the federal budget deficit. Decrying $1 trillion dollar deficits as a threat to our national security, he said it was “time to stop rewarding ineptitude,” and that all “future proposed spending increases must be paid for by reducing other government spending.” Eight years later, he seems to have lost sight of that vow.

On Thursday, he was asked by CNN’s Wolf Blitzer about the news that — thanks to the recently passed Trump tax cuts and appropriations — the budget deficit is expected to swell to $1 trillion again next year. Reed blamed the problem entirely on government spending and defended Trump’s tax cuts (which he had backed) as “a key component of the solution to the problem of the national debt.”


Noting that he had opposed the bipartisan budget deal earlier this year, he said that the GOP majority in Congress must “roll up our sleeves and work across the aisle to solve the spending problem that’s causing this deficit crisis in our time.”

But literally just moments later, Reed said that he supports borrowing $12 billion more from China to pay for a bailout for farmers. Though Blitzer noted that the problem is being caused by Trump himself through his “disruptive trade policy,” Reed defended the president and endorsed the unfunded expenditure.

“I do believe that’s an appropriate response given the disruption that we’re seeing,” said Reed, promising “we’re gonna see long term growth for our farmers and others.”

At no point during the interview did Reed acknowledge the disconnect between his concerns about government spending and his support for a massive, unfunded bailout.