Trump to GOP: Don't cut Medicare, Social Security in debt ceiling fight

• Trump, who is running for president in 2024, said Republicans should instead focus on ending “left-wing gender programs from our military” and the “billions being spent on climate extremism.”
• “Cut waste, fraud and abuse everywhere that we can find it and there is plenty of it,” Trump said. “But do not cut the benefits our seniors worked for and paid for their entire lives. Save Social Security, don’t destroy it.”

State of play: The U.S. reached its $31.4 trillion debt ceiling Thursday, the Treasury Department said. As of yet, there’s no sign of a deal between the White House and congressional Republicans to increase the federal government’s borrowing limit.

• Republicans have said they would not look to raise limit unless Biden makes cuts to federal spending, Politico reports.
• Some House Republicans said health care programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid, should be on the table for spending cuts, Axios’ Peter Sullivan writes.

More from Axios:

The debt ceiling fight

Debt ceiling fight looms over Medicare and Medicaid

What to know about extraordinary measures as debt ceiling hits