A newly surfaced recording is fueling fresh debate inside Republican circles and raising questions about private disagreements surrounding President Donald Trump’s economic agenda.
According to a report published Sunday by Axios, secretly recorded audio captures Senator Ted Cruz sharply criticizing President Donald Trump during a closed-door discussion with Republican donors. The comments reportedly focused on Trump’s tariff policies as well as Vice President JD Vance.
The recordings date back to mid-2025, shortly after President Trump announced his high-profile “Liberation Day” tariffs in early April. In one portion of the audio, Cruz recounts a late-night phone call involving Trump and several Republican senators.
According to Cruz, lawmakers urged the president to reconsider the scope and timing of the tariffs. He told donors the conversation quickly became tense, describing the president as visibly frustrated and unreceptive to their concerns.
Cruz said the discussion deteriorated rapidly and that the president responded angrily when warned about possible political consequences.
In the recording, Cruz recalls cautioning Trump that prolonged market instability and rising consumer prices could seriously impact voters heading into the 2026 midterm elections.
He warned that if retirement accounts suffered significant losses and grocery prices continued climbing, Republicans could face a difficult election cycle, potentially losing control of Congress and enduring prolonged political battles in Washington.
According to Cruz, the president forcefully rejected those warnings.
While the comments may surprise some Republicans, Cruz had expressed similar concerns publicly at the time. In early April 2025, he warned that broad tariffs carried economic risks and could harm American consumers if not carefully implemented.
Initially, financial markets reacted negatively to the tariff announcement. However, those concerns have largely faded. Since last spring, the Dow Jones has risen approximately 28 percent, the S&P 500 is up about 40 percent, and the Nasdaq has climbed nearly 50 percent, signaling renewed investor confidence.
The leaked recordings also reveal Cruz positioning himself apart from other potential Republican leaders. In the audio, he criticizes Vice President Vance’s foreign-policy views, suggesting they are heavily influenced by conservative media personality Tucker Carlson.
Cruz reportedly told donors that Vance and Carlson share the same worldview and political instincts, framing himself as a different option for the party’s future leadership.
The recordings offer a rare look behind the curtain of Republican politics, highlighting the contrast between public unity and private disagreement — even among close allies of President Trump.
As the 2026 midterms approach and attention slowly turns toward 2028, the revelations underscore how internal debates over trade, foreign policy, and economic strategy continue to shape the Republican Party’s direction.