And there are seven days left until June 1st, which is the date the US Treasury expected the government to run out of money and no longer pay its debts.
But members of the House of Representatives actually went on vacation after their final vote on Thursday morning and will not return until June 4.
The White House said Thursday that a U.S. debt default was not under discussion and the talks were centered on the country’s budget.
He added that negotiators appointed by US President Joe Biden had had productive discussions on the debt ceiling with Republicans.
The senators are due back two days before so-called “Day X,” which will be determined later, but their role will likely be limited to closing any deals reached between the Republican-led House of Representatives and Democratic President Joe Biden.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said lawmakers will be given 24 hours’ notice if they are asked to return to vote, as news suggests negotiators representing Republicans and the White House have begun to iron out their differences.
Republicans are demanding spending cuts of up to $130 billion, with next year’s spending set at 2022 levels, and have outlined three other pillars to reach a deal: energy project approval reform, stricter work requirements for benefit claimants and unused pandemic refunds. aid money.
But Democrats reject the proposed cuts and want Republicans to approve an increase unconditionally, as they have done dozens of times in the past.
In turn, McCarthy rejected demands to pass the bill without cutting spending and added that he would not agree to raising taxes on businesses or the wealthy as an alternative to cuts to reduce the debt burden of the country. country of 31 trillion dollars.
McCarthy said, “We know where our differences are and we’ll stay at the table to try to work this out.”
White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients said Republicans’ objections to runaway government spending were “dishonest,” pointing to their plan to extend Donald Trump’s tax cuts, which Democrats say would add $3.5 trillion in debt.
The threat of default is an “artificial crisis” that is already making borrowing more expensive and costing Americans money, Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyou told investors at a conference in Washington.
Without efforts to expedite the process, any deal would take at least 10 days to formalize on the legislative side, pass the House and Senate, and reach Biden’s office.
A batch of Social Security payments, worth about $25 billion, are set to go out on June 2, and those payments may be stopped if the Treasury Department is unable to cover loan repayments, and it is estimated that about 27 million Americans will fall into poverty without Social Security.
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