The leader of the Republican opposition in the US House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, has stated that his party will not approve an increase in the country’s debt limit without cuts in public spending. This statement has led the administration to accuse him again of taking the economy “hostage.” Democrats and Republicans remain at loggerheads over raising the debt ceiling. The country needs to honor its commitments, and the deadline is fast approaching.
In a speech at the New York Stock Exchange, McCarthy accused President Biden of “reckless” spending and called on him to agree to a “reasonable negotiation” of the budget. The Republicans, with a majority in the lower house, have repeatedly threatened to block an increase in the country’s debt issuance limit if Democrats do not agree to drastic budget cuts.
McCarthy added that the lower chamber will pass legislation in the coming weeks to raise that debt limit, but that it will include spending cuts. The White House has asked Republicans not to tie the budget to the process of raising the debt ceiling, which periodically pits the two parties in Congress against each other. By making spending cuts a condition for raising the credit limit, McCarthy “takes the economy hostage” and “breaks” with the tradition according to which this increase is made by consensus between Democrats and Republicans, the executive said Monday.
Biden warned just over a month ago that the dispute over the debt ceiling represents “the greatest threat” to the economy. The president also signed into law about $1 trillion for infrastructure and support for the semiconductor industry and clean energy development. The United States is at risk of defaulting on its debt obligations as early as July if the legislature does not resolve to raise the federal debt limit, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) said in mid-February.