Kevin McCarthy challenges Chuck Schumer to bring clean debt ceiling bill to Senate floor
Ryan King
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House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) challenged his Senate counterpart to bring a clean debt ceiling bill to the Senate floor.
“If Chuck Schumer believes a clean bill can pass, put it on the floor, but the thing you have to realize is you have a 60 vote margin in the Senate. He can’t pass it,” McCarthy said on CNBC’s Squawk Box. “So they’ve got to find something, and they need to negotiate.”
MCCARTHY MAKES LATE-NIGHT CONCESSIONS ON DEBT CEILING AMID GOP REVOLT
Democrats have criticized McCarthy over the Republicans’ delay in having a clear plan to lift the debt ceiling, taking note of House GOP infighting. But McCarthy managed to narrowly wrangle through a measure as the opening act in negotiations Wednesday.
President Joe Biden threatened to veto the GOP bill, and Democrats have unified in opposition, demanding a bill that lifts the nation’s borrowing authority without any strings attached.
“Republicans are the only responsible ones in this debate. We moved something early, long before the debt ceiling came,” McCarthy added. “If the president pushes this envelope, he will be punished by the American public, but more importantly, he will harm this economy.”
Back in January, the United States reached its $31.4 trillion debt limit. In the time since, the Treasury Department has deployed “extraordinary measures” to keep funds flowing, but that is projected to run out sometime between June and August. If that happens, the U.S. runs the risk of an economically disastrous default.
Biden and McCarthy last met in February. The White House has been adamant that Biden won’t negotiate on the debt ceiling, but is open to discussions on spending if they are done separately from the debt limit.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) ripped the passage of the GOP plan Wednesday. The bill featured many Republican wishlist items, particularly spending cuts. The Congressional Budget Office estimated one version of it would slash the national deficit by $4.8 trillion over the next 10 years.
“The Republican Default on America Act is DOA in the Senate. It’s a ransom note to the American people to suffer the Republican radical, right-wing agenda or suffer a catastrophic default. Democrats won’t allow it,” Schumer tweeted.
https://twitter.com/SenSchumer/status/1651358104993316864?s=20
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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) echoed Schumer that the GOP measure is dead on arrival in the Senate, taking note of the filibuster. Given the GOP’s threadbare majority in the House, many naysayers questioned whether McCarthy’s proposal could even clear the House.
“I think grit and perseverance matters in life. And I think it only made us stronger as we went through that. You know, every single week, they underestimate what this new Congress can do,” McCarthy added.