Trump invites Chip Roy to his first challenge to the debt ceiling

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WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump on Thursday called for a primary lawsuit against U.S. Rep. Chip Roy over his opposition to raising the debt ceiling without tough limits on future spending, calling the Austin Republican an “obstructionist.”

“The very unpopular Texas “Congressman” Chip Roy is, as always, standing in the way of another major Republican victory – all to gain cheap publicity for himself. Republican obstructionists must be eliminated,” Trump posted on his social media platform.

“Chip Roy is just another ambitious guy with no talent,” Trump continued. “I hope there are some talented challengers in the Great State of Texas preparing to chase Chip in the primary. He won’t stand a chance!”

Trump made a surprise appeal Wednesday to raise the debt ceiling — or even scrap it — saying the politically damaging job would be better done while President Joe Biden is still in office. The debt ceiling affects borrowing for already allocated expenses. Failure to raise the borrowing limit could mean the U.S. would be unable to pay the interest on its loans – a default that economists say would have a devastating impact on confidence in the country’s economy.

In the past, Republicans have used the debt ceiling to force Democrats to adopt policies that limit future spending. Trump and his Vice President-elect JD Vance said in a statement Wednesday that they wanted to raise the debt ceiling now to prevent Democrats from doing the same to them in order to advance liberal policies.

“Raising the debt ceiling isn’t great, but we would rather do it under Biden’s watch,” Trump and Vance said in their joint statement. “If Democrats won’t cooperate on the debt ceiling now, what makes anyone think they will in June during our term?”

But Roy fights vehemently to reduce federal spending and opposes raising the debt ceiling without forcing Democrats to agree to future spending limits. On Sean Hannity’s radio show Thursday, Roy said he was willing to raise the debt ceiling, “but only with spending restraints and structural reforms.”

Roy is not afraid to voice displeasure on Capitol Hill if it means fighting for his limited-government principles. He came into conflict with the leadership because he limited funding and allowed the rank and file more influence over the leadership’s decisions. He also clashed with Trump and his allies and supported Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the Republican presidential primary. He later supported Trump in the general election.

Roy ran unopposed in his Republican primary this year. Roy represents parts of Austin and San Antonio. He won re-election in November by nearly 26 points.

The proposal to scrap the debt ceiling comes as the U.S. House of Representatives rages in a separate fight over how to fund the government beyond midnight Friday, when current funding expires.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) introduced a measure called a “continuing resolution” earlier this week to keep government funding at current levels through March of next year and give Congress time to pass legislation for to write the expenses for the rest of the next year. Without the resolution, much of the federal government will remain closed until Congress reaches an agreement on funding the government.

Republicans bristled at the continuing resolution because it contained more than 1,500 pages of additional priorities unrelated to maintaining government openness and left little time for review of the entire text of the bill. The party’s right wing, particularly Roy, has condemned massive legislation like this in the past, saying it circumvents the accountability of rank-and-file members and is another way to push through unnecessary spending.

“It’s $110 billion in unpaid deficit spending that will continue to pile up the debt,” Roy said.

Priorities included in the bill included billions of dollars in disaster relief funding, including over $5.4 billion for Texas following Hurricane Beryl. The bill also included Republican priorities, including Sen. Ted Cruz’s Take It Down Act, which would criminalize pornographic deep fakes.

Elon Musk, the Texas transplant billionaire who was cited as one of Trump’s thought leaders on government efficiency, sounded a clarion call among the right, repeatedly posting “Kill the Bill” on social media.

Democrats were furious that an unelected billionaire like Musk could have enough influence in the Republican Party to block the legislation.

“Hurricane Beryl hit Texas in 2024, damaging 3 million homes, costing $4.6 billion and leaving 7,000 people unemployed. The bill includes $5.4 billion to help Texans rebuild. But the unelected person (Elon Musk) has decided that Texans can lose jobs and businesses,” U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Fort Worth, said on social media.