WASHINGTON, Jan 13 (Reuters) – U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson on Tuesday said Congress should explore President Donald Trump’s idea of imposing a cap on credit card interest rates but warned of the possibility of “negative secondary effects.”
Johnson, a Republican, told reporters that the House of Representatives “ought to think about, investigate” Trump’s proposal that was floated on Friday.
But he added, “Are there unintended consequences” that could trigger “negative secondary effects.” Johnson expressed the possibility that companies “stop lending money and maybe they cap what people are able to borrow to a very low amount.”
Trump said he wanted a one-year cap on credit card interest rates at 10% beginning on January 20, the one-year anniversary of the start of his second term as president.
But he did not say how that would be accomplished, leading to questions over whether he would try to impose the action through executive order.
“You would need legislation to do something like that,” Johnson added in a press conference.
(Reporting by Richard Cowan, Katharine Jackson)
