Members of the Republican-controlled House of Representatives are beginning to consider the money bill stemming from the agreement reached to raise the US debt ceiling, in exchange for budget cuts.
An important first meeting of the Laws Committee is due to be held on Tuesday afternoon, which should give an indication of the prevailing trends, at a time when a part of conservative and progressive MPs oppose the settlement which was reached over the weekend. -end after marathon negotiations.
And if no problem arises, Kevin McCarthy expects a vote in the House of Representatives on Wednesday in plenary session, with the Senate, with a Democratic majority, voting later on the draft regulations.
For his part, Joe Biden, candidate for a second term in 2024, continued Monday to consult all over the place to convince the Democrats to give their agreement, according to a White House official.
The president expressed optimism that the bill will pass Congress this week, telling reporters before leaving the White House, “I will never say that I am sure what Congress will do, but I feel good”.
On Sunday night, Biden called on lawmakers to pass the law, which is the result of a settlement he personally brokered with the Republican opposition.
He said: “The deal averts the worst possible crisis, a default for the first time in our country’s history, and averts an economic downturn, damage to pensions and the loss of millions of jobs.”
Busy schedule
The US Treasury Department had previously warned that Monday, June 5 would be the date the US government may be unable to raise funds, and therefore unable to pay dues for its debts and bills, pensions and federal employee salaries. .
Such a catastrophic scenario would be unprecedented in the United States, and would have global repercussions, if it occurred, according to economists.
In broad outline, the agreement provides for raising the ceiling on the United States’ public debt for a period of two years, i.e. until after the presidential elections of 2024.
The deal did not include the deep cuts Republicans want, though non-defense spending will remain virtually unchanged next year, rising only nominally in 2025.
Also, the agreement provides for a reduction of 10 billion dollars in funds allocated to the tax services to modernize and strengthen controls, which was a request from the Republicans, as well as the recovery of funds allocated to the fight against Covid-19 which have not yet been spent.
In addition, it will adopt new rules for accessing certain federal assistance programs.
For their part, Democratic and Republican leaders said they were confident that they would muster the necessary votes to eventually adopt the text.
Details of the settlement were revealed on Sunday, giving members of Congress 72 hours to read through.
But a vote on this is not a foregone conclusion, as the text is meeting stiff resistance from some members of Congress from both parties.
Conservative Republicans have previously declared their opposition to the deal, such as Rep. Dan Bishop, who chastised McCarthy for saying he “got next to nothing” in the negotiations.
Another Republican, Matt Rosendale, called it “an insult to the American people”.
On the left, progressive lawmakers expressed skepticism, such as Ro Kanna, who said many Democrats opposed to budget cuts “don’t know yet” how to vote.
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