Montana’s two U.S. Senators split their votes Thursday night on a bipartisan deal to extend the debt ceiling for two more years.
Democratic Sen. Jon Tester supported the measure. In a statement released after the vote, Tester said while the bill isn’t perfect, “defaulting on our debts is not an option.”
Tester said doing so would have devastating effects on the nation’s economy and Montanans’ finances.
Montana’s Republican U.S. Sen. Steve Daines opposed the debt limit deal. In a statement after Thursday night’s vote, Daines said he opposed it because it does not do enough to stop reckless federal spending.
The 99-page bill gives the Treasury the authority to borrow trillions of additional dollars to pay its tabs. It also bolsters funds for defense and veterans, cuts back funds for Internal Revenue Service agents and rejects President Joe Biden’s call to roll back Trump-era tax breaks on corporations and the wealthy to help cover the nation’s deficits.