US President Donald Trump has picked a fresh fight with his fellow Republicans, saying congressional leaders could have avoided a "mess" over raising the US debt ceiling if they had heeded his advice.
In the latest in a stream of criticisms that could undermine his aims to cut taxes, pass a budget and rebuild infrastructure, Trump on Thursday sought to blame party leaders if Congress fails to agree to raise the cap on how much the federal government may borrow.
The Treasury Department says the ceiling must be raised by September 29.
If not, the government won't be able to borrow more money or pay its bills, including its debt payments. This could hurt the US' credit rating, cause financial turmoil, harm the US economy and possibly trigger a recession.
Trump says he's advised Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House of Representatives Speaker Paul Ryan to link passage of legislation raising the debt ceiling to a bill on veterans affairs that he signed into law on August 12.
"They ... didn't do it so now we have a big deal with Dems holding them up (as usual) on Debt Ceiling approval. Could have been so easy-now a mess!" Trump said in Twitter posts.
Recent media reports suggest that Trump's relationship with McConnell has deteriorated amid repeated attacks by Trump on the Republican Senate majority leader for, among other things, failing to get a healthcare bill passed.
The New York Times reported on Tuesday that McConnell and Trump were locked in a political "cold war," especially after an August 9 phone call that it said devolved into a shouting match. On the 9th and the 10th Trump assailed McConnell via Twitter, angered by a speech in which McConnell said Trump had "excessive expectations" of Congress.
Trump's salvo ran counter to efforts this week by the White House and McConnell's office to play down reports of discord.
A spokesman for McConnell noted the Senate majority leader had said earlier this week, in an appearance with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, that the debt ceiling would be raised.
McConnell was "unequivocal" about it, said spokesman Don Stewart. He said McConnell mentioned it again on Wednesday in a statement the Senate leader issued about his "shared goals" with Trump.
Ryan, speaking at a town hall meeting on tax reform at a Boeing plant in Washington state, also said Congress would pass legislation to raise the ceiling in time to ensure debt payment.
White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders denied there was any need to repair ties between Trump and top Republican lawmakers.
Raising the debt ceiling is one of the must-pass measures Congress will take up when it returns on September 5.
On Tuesday Trump threatened to shut down the government if Congress failed to secure funding for his long-promised wall along the US-Mexican border.
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