Mike Johnson criticizes Trump's 10% credit card cap
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House Speaker Mike Johnson during a Jan. 7 press conference on Capitol Hill. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) threw cold water on President Trump's push to cap credit card interest rates at 10% Tuesday, questioning the policy merits of the idea and signaling Congress would be unlikely to act on it.
Why it matters: Johnson's hesitancy to embrace Trump's proposal is notable on its face — the speaker is often in lockstep with the president — and it suggests the proposal lacks the support needed to move through the House.
- "You've got to be very careful if you go forward in that," Johnson told reporters Tuesday when asked about interest rate cap. "In our zeal to bring down costs, you don't want to have negative secondary effects."
- "The problem is, if you do that, then the credit card companies, the negative secondary effect is that they would just stop lending money, and maybe they cap what people are able to borrow at a very low amount," Johnson continued, adding that the Trump and others had "probably not thought through" it.
- Trump can call for a rate cap, but Congress would have to deliver on it — a point Johnson also emphasized, adding that it would take "a lot of work" to build consensus.
Driving the news: Trump called Friday for credit card interest rates to be capped at 10% by Jan. 20, a popular idea with progressives and consumer advocates.
- Johnson said he spoke with Trump on Monday and described the president as "laser focused" on lowering the cost of living and exploring every idea "under the sun" to do so.
- He cautioned against overreacting to "out of the box" proposals floated by the president, telling reporters to not get "too spun up" about it.
Catch up quick: After Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) noted that on X last Friday that Trump promised an interest-rate cap during his 2024 campaign, the president took to Truth Social to say he'd do it, effective Jan. 20.
- Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said she told Trump on a call Monday that a bill could pass if he'd back it.
- But last year, Sanders and Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) proposed a bill to cap rates — that's gone nowhere on the Hill.
Yes, but: If Trump pushes hard for the idea, he may be able to muster enough support among House Republicans eager to prove their loyalty.
Zoom out: Credit-card interest rates have soared to record levels. In the last three months of 2025, rates hit 21%, on average, per data from the Federal Reserve, Axios' Emily Peck reports.
- A 10% cap would save Americans $100 billion, according to an analysis from Vanderbilt University's Policy Accelerator released last fall. But rewards and lending would likely be cut.
The bottom line: Even with Trump's backing, a 10% cap on credit card interest rates faces major political, economic and legislative hurdles — and little enthusiasm from House GOP leadership.
