McCarthy still confident
Top meeting does not bring an agreement in the US debt dispute
05/23/2023 02:47 am
Ten days before an impending US default, a new top-level talk between the US President and the opposition Republicans does not bring the hoped-for breakthrough. The speaker of the House of Representatives wants to meet Biden daily from now on.
According to the Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, the most recent summit meeting in the dispute over raising the US debt ceiling ended without a result. “We’ve had a productive conversation. We haven’t reached an agreement yet,” McCarthy said at a news conference after an hour-long meeting with Biden in the Oval Office. Staffers from both sides would continue the talks with the aim of finding common ground.
After the meeting, McCarthy expressed confidence that an agreement could be reached. Biden and he would now speak every day until an agreement was on the table. “I think we can still do it.” The “tone” was now better than at previous meetings, McCarthy praised.
Time is of the essence: according to the Treasury Department, the United States is threatened with insolvency from June without an agreement. The US stock markets were cautious. A US default could have serious consequences for the global financial system.
The debate is about raising the federal debt ceiling from the current $31.4 trillion. For this step, Biden’s Democrats need the support of the Republicans, who hold the majority in the House of Representatives under McCarthy. However, for approval, these are demanding, among other things, spending cuts and an increase in defense spending. Both sides are also confronted with hardliners in their ranks, some of whom are making more far-reaching demands. Congressional and presidential elections will be held next year. The entire House of Representatives and a third of the Senate will be reelected.