Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., told Newsmax on Thursday there is no reason for the U.S. budget to be higher now than it was before the COVID-19 pandemic, saying President Donald Trump is receptive to rolling back spending to 2019 levels.

Johnson told “Rob Schmitt Tonight” he met with Trump on Thursday to discuss his plan, which would dial back federal spending to prepandemic levels while adjusting for inflation and population growth. He said it would shave $700 billion to $800 billion off the 2025 fiscal year’s budget of $7.3 trillion.

“It was a very good meeting,” Johnson said. “We definitely moved the ball forward in our discussions.

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