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Editor’s note, Dec. 21, 10:20 a.m. ET: Shortly after midnight Saturday, the Senate passed a bill to fund the government and avert a government shutdown. The bill did not include a suspension or repeal of the debt ceiling, which President Donald Trump had called for.
President-elect Donald Trump has not yet begun his second term when he threw Congress into chaos, sank a bipartisan spending deal, and made his demands as a government shutdown loomed in the middle of the night.
In some ways, this is just the latest installment in a familiar story about House Republican dysfunction over spending battles and President Trump’s willingness to embrace and disrupt things.
But the surprising aspect of this showdown is exactly why Trump chose this fight. In other words, he wants to suspend or even eliminate the debt ceiling.
“Congress needs to get rid of the ridiculous debt ceiling or maybe extend it until 2029,” President Trump posted on his social media platform Truth Social early Friday morning. “If you don’t have this, you should never close a deal.”
The debt ceiling is a legal limit on the amount of new debt that the U.S. government can issue. If it is not raised or suspended by the deadline, the country will default on its debt. It is widely believed that economic turmoil will follow. Republicans are using the threat of default to force policy concessions from Democratic presidents, and Trump fears Democrats will do the same thing against him in 2025. That’s why he wants an immediate end to the debt ceiling, or even a complete repeal.
This was an unexpected turn of events, as the original bipartisan agreement made no mention of the debt ceiling. The agreement only funds the government for three more months and included several other provisions that received bipartisan support.
On Wednesday, billionaire Elon Musk began publicly attacking the deal, complaining about the bill’s “waste” and also making sometimes inaccurate claims about these additional provisions. But he said nothing about the debt ceiling. If the debt ceiling is suspended, Trump and the Republican Party will have more freedom to spend.
Then, in a statement condemning the deal Wednesday afternoon, President Trump suddenly put the debt ceiling on the table. “Raising the debt ceiling is not great, but we’d rather do it on Biden’s watch,” he wrote on Truth Social, calling Republicans “stupid and incompetent” for not addressing the issue sooner. , complained that “the debt ceiling guillotine is looming.” By June. ”
On Thursday, House Speaker Mike Johnson abandoned the bipartisan agreement, removing several additional provisions and adding a debt ceiling increase in line with President Trump’s wishes. Some conservatives who supported Mr. Musk’s criticism of the initial deal’s huge spending, believe the debt ceiling is an important tool to rein in spending, are horrified by the latest turn of events. On Thursday night, more than 30 House Republicans broke with President Trump and voted against the new bill, but nearly all House Democrats also opposed it, causing the bill to fail.
But Democrats are still considering how to respond to this unexpected turn of events. Democratic maniacs have long hated the debt ceiling, believing that irresponsible Republicans used it to hold the economy “hostage” and usurp Presidents Obama and Biden; I would be happy to see it abolished. But the party’s congressional leaders may want to maintain this policy as a lever against President Trump, and are not inclined to bow to Trump’s demands from above and are unlikely to agree to any agreement. would like to participate in that agreement.
Here’s what to say about the politics of Trump’s second term
This situation remains fluid and we do not yet know how it will end. But there are already some aspects that tell the story of what happened.
First, some argue that Mr. Musk has destroyed the initial bipartisan agreement and that Mr. Trump and the Republican Party are nothing more than puppets dancing on the strings of the richest man in the world; I can’t believe this is happening.
It’s unclear exactly why Musk opposed the bill so vehemently, or whether he was working as a freelancer or in collaboration with Trump.
In addition to complaining about too much government spending, Musk made a variety of false claims about the bill’s contents. $3 billion for an NFL stadium in Washington, DC (not at all true).
Some have pointed out that the bill also includes restrictions on high-tech investment in China, where Musk has business interests, and is that the real motive behind Musk’s opposition? I have doubts. (This provision was later removed from Johnson’s amendment bill.)
Whatever Mr. Musk wanted, once Mr. Trump got involved, it turned out that he wanted something completely different: raising the debt ceiling. And Mr. Musk has fallen behind on strategy.
Second, Congressional Republicans are out of step with Trump on policy issues, and the intraparty tensions that crippled the party on spending issues remain.
President Trump praised Johnson’s amendment as a “very good agreement,” but 38 House Republicans subsequently voted against it. President Trump angrily threatened to support the primary challenger of one such Republican, Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas), but Roy remained unmoved.
Mr. Roy is part of a group of dozens of House Republicans who have long been hostile to bipartisan spending deals with Democrats and have long made ridiculous and unrealistic demands for spending cuts. I went. Their reluctance to support Republican leadership’s proposals effectively means that Republican leadership must rely on Democratic votes to pass government funding legislation. President Trump has yet to find a way around this dynamic.
Third, President Trump’s defiance of conservative doctrine presents opportunities and dangers for Democrats.
Democratic maniacs believe that eliminating the debt ceiling would be great for the country, and that eliminating this hostage-taking tool for Republicans would ultimately benefit future Democratic presidents. But the party is wary that such favoritism to Trump could make it easier for him to enact the agenda they fear and oppose.
Politically, the path of least resistance would be for Democrats to simply oppose everything Republicans do, maximizing the sway of a troublesome Republican coalition. But if you negotiate effectively and think long-term, there may be a chance to win significant policy.
Imagine a world without the debt ceiling. No fake crises, no risk of default, no hostage taking. that’s nice! Will they be able to make it a reality?
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