WASHINGTON — Rep. Jim Jordan, co-founder of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, doesn’t blame President Donald Trump for striking a deal with Democratic leaders that the Ohio Republican considers bad for taxpayers.

Jordan, on “Fox News Sunday,” blames his party’s leaders for not presenting with better options, forcing Trump to accept a three-month extension of government funding and the debt limit with no attachments.

“Frankly, what options did the president have in front of him?” Jordan said.

Speaker Paul Ryan’s leadership team made a mistake by breaking for the traditional long August recess without a plan to address the debt limit, Jordan said.

Trump’s deal puts House conservatives in a tough position: unable to praise the move, but wary of criticizing the president directly for fear of blowback from his loyal base. Unlike congressional Republican leaders, Trump remains popular among Republican voters, especially in solidly Republican districts such as Jordan’s in northwest Ohio.

Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell made no secret of not wanting the three-month extension; they pushed for a longer-term agreement. But Trump accepted the short-term deal, with a deadline of Dec. 8.

The legislation, which included $15.25 billion in disaster aid for victims of Hurricane Harvey, passed Congress.

Trump signed it into law on Friday.

Regardless of his disappointment, Jordan downplayed talk of the conservative group mounting a coup against Ryan. He said the group’s only goal now is to deliver on its promises and called on Ryan to “focus on tax cuts” by releasing a plan and taking the case to Americans.