Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin sent mixed signals Wednesday on the Trump administration’s approach to the next stimulus package.
On the one hand, Mnuchin indicated that the White House is on a wartime footing when it comes to the federal budget. “I think we're all sensitive to that this is a war and we need to win this war and we need to spend what it takes to win the war," Mnuchin told Fox Business Network.
But the Treasury Secretary hedged by suggesting that concerns about the debt-fueled spending may act as a brake on future spending plans: “On the other hand, I think we are sensitive to the economic impacts of putting on debt, and that's something that the president is reviewing with us very carefully.”
Although there will likely be more pushback from conservatives on the size and scope of additional federal spending in the next relief package, Mnuchin did point out that the financial constraints are currently quite modest: "The good news is interest rates are very low, so the cost of carrying the debt to the American taxpayer is quite low," he said.
