Thune not ready to abolish debt limit in government funding bill

Incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) on Thursday stopped short of embracing a proposal to add language to a year-end spending bill to abolish the debt limit so President-elect Trump doesn’t have to deal with it after he takes office in January.

Trump's decision to oppose the spending bill that had been under consideration has increased the odds of a government shutdown and thrown the House and Senate into turmoil.

“I think that at some point we’re going to have to deal with that. It’s coming. How we deal with it, I’m open to suggestions,” Thune told reporters when asked if he supports getting rid of the debt limit.

Trump told NBC News in an interview that getting rid of the debt limit is “the smartest thing [Congress] could do.”

“I would support that entirely,” he said.

Trump noted Democrats have previously called for abolishing the debt limit.

“If they want to get rid of it, I would lead the charge,” Trump said.

Thune said he would support Congress taking on the debt limit sooner rather than later to avoid a potential crisis next year but he’s not yet ready to jump on board with getting rid of the measure, which is supposed to act as a brake on federal spending.

“I don’t know if I’ve heard him say that,” Thune replied when asked about Trump’s call to abolish he debt limit, a story that broke only hours earlier.

“I do know there are different theories about how to deal with the debt limit going forward,” he said. “If it was effective, we wouldn’t have a $35 trillion debt. So the debt limit for all intents and purposes has limited meaning in the modern world but it is something that markets obviously pay attention to.

“In terms of how we’re going to address it, I’m not sure exactly what that looks like at the moment,” Thune added.

Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance rocked Capitol Hill on Wednesday by calling for lawmakers increase the debt limit as part of a short-term government funding measure.

Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (Ill.) and Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-Pa.) introduced the Debt Ceiling Reform Act last year that would authorize the Treasury Department to continue paying federal debts unless Congress passes a resolution of disapproval.

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