Biden slammed Republicans’ demands during debt talks as “unacceptable,” while McCarthy unwaveringly urged the president to make spending cuts.
President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy are blaming each other for the current partisan impasse as the clock ticks down to the deadline to raise the United States debt limit and avert an economic crisis.
The Democratic president and Republican speaker had a call on Sunday while Biden was returning to the U.S. from the G7 Summit in Japan, according to McCarthy who also said on Twitter that they will meet on Monday to resume talks in person. The open dialogue between the leaders is a positive turn from a day earlier when McCarthy said negotiations were “moving backward.”
The White House and the Republican-led House of Representatives have been locked in a stalemate for weeks over negotiations to raise the U.S. debt ceiling. Biden is seeking an increase in the amount of debt the U.S. is allowed to carry to fund his party’s preferred programs as well as military spending, which includes aid to Ukraine. McCarthy wants to see broad spending cuts across the government in an effort to reduce the national deficit. If Democrats and Republicans fail to reach a deal by the June 1 deadline, it could result in the U.S. defaulting on its estimated $31.4 trillion debt, meaning the government will not have the ability to borrow more money to pay bills. It would be the first time in U.S. history that the county defaulted on its debt, which would have dire consequences for the national and global economy.
While Republicans are calling for an increase in military spending, veterans care and border security, they’re demanding steep cuts to other programs. Biden said that the GOP bill to avoid a default would result in 21 million people losing Medicaid in addition to cutting 100,000 teachers and 30,000 law enforcement officers.
