Biden rejects Republican demands on debt ceiling
WASHINGTON – Talks between the teams of the U.S. president and House Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy on the debt-ceiling issue have stalled. Biden now hopes to speak directly with McCarthy to salvage the talks and reach an agreement to raise the debt ceiling.
Officials briefed him on an ongoing basis while he was overseas attending the G-7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan.
Republicans have demanded spending cuts as a condition for House approval of the demands.
According to the Treasury Department, the government could run out of money as early as June 1.
At a press conference shortly before his return to Washington, Biden called the demand “unacceptable.”
He called on Republicans to back away from their extreme position.
The president said he could invoke a constitutional clause in the 14th Amendment that authorizes him to bypass Congress and raise the debt ceiling.
The clause states that the validity of the national debt “shall not be questioned.”
He said the government has the authority to do this. The question, however, is whether the clause can be invoked in time, given likely legal challenges and the fast-approaching deadline.
Congress, where Republicans are in the majority, has so far blocked authorization for further borrowing.
Biden had planned to travel to Papua New Guinea and Australia from Japan but had to cancel that trip because of the debt talks.
Raising the debt ceiling is normally a noncontroversial annual procedure. But this year, the Republican Party has made the threat of default a powerful negotiating tool.
They are forcing Biden to accept spending cuts. In the talks so far, McCarthy’s team has called for deep cuts in non-defense spending. Interestingly, they have insisted on increased funding for the military.
The U.S. government will soon have to borrow more to meet spending already agreed to in the current budget.
Biden has accused his opponents of jeopardizing the U.S. economy to score political points. If the demands are accepted, education, health care, and other welfare programs would bear the burden.
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