Negotiations between the administration of Democratic US President Joe Biden and lawmakers in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives over the government’s debt limit will resume on Wednesday.
Talks between the two sides broke down on Tuesday with no apparent progress toward an agreement that would give the US Treasury permission to exceed the current ceiling of $31 trillion and continue borrowing money to pay off outstanding government debt. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has warned that the department will run out of money on Thursday, June 1, which could force the government to default on its debts, plunging the United States into a catastrophic recession and creating confusion in global markets.
House Republicans are demanding that the Biden administration agree to cut federal spending to 2022 levels. Republicans also want to impose strict work requirements for Americans enrolled in low-income relief programs, such as cash and food assistance. and the Medicaid health insurance program.
The White House has proposed freezing federal spending at current levels this year and wants to end tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans and some corporations. The administration has also proposed that defense spending be included in any potential spending cuts.
Both President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy have rejected competing proposals, but news outlets say a potential deal could include recovering up to $30 billion in COVID relief funds. -19 unspent and reforms to simplify the approval process for new energy projects.
White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Tuesday that negotiations were “moving forward” but insisted that both Democrats and Republicans “have to understand that they’re not going to get everything they want.” She said the goal is “to come up with a budget that is reasonable, that is bipartisan, that Democrats and Republicans in the House and Senate can vote on and agree on.”
But Rep. Garrett Graves, one of the House Republican negotiators, said Tuesday that there were still “significant gaps” between the two parties.
A group of hardline conservative Republicans is urging President McCarthy, who needed their support to be elected to office in January, not to compromise with Biden and instead force the president to concede to their demands. Biden is also being pressured by House Democrats not to cave in to the Republicans and simply declare that the government will continue to borrow money by invoking the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which states that the “validity of of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law… will not be questioned.”
Negotiations are also complicated by the need to convert the agreement into legislation and give House lawmakers 72 hours to review the bill before putting it to a vote. It must then go to the Democratic-controlled Senate for approval before going to Biden for his signature.
[Parte de la información para este informe provino de The Associated Press, Reuters y Agence France-Presse]
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