WASHINGTON (AP) – Debate cap talks between the White House and Republican lawmakers stalled, restarted, and stalled again early over the weekend, at a Washington summit watched remotely by President Joe Biden and other leaders. There is hope that progress will be made to prevent a potentially catastrophic federal default.
As a sign that talks were resuming, food was brought to a room in the Capitol on Saturday morning, only to be taken away hours later. A meeting on Saturday seemed unlikely because they were not authorized to report publicly, according to a person familiar with the talks who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The Biden government is seeking an agreement with Republicans led by House Speaker Republican Kevin McCarthy. June 1 is the deadline to raise the debt ceiling, which is now $31 trillion, so the government can continue paying the country’s bills. Republicans are demanding big tax cuts, which Democrats are opposing.
On Friday morning, McCarthy said it was time to take a “pause” in the talks. The teams met again at sunset, but almost immediately declared they would not continue.
At the G7 summit in Japan, Biden attempted to reassure his allies that the United States would not default, something that would shake the world economy. He said he saw progress in the talks.
“The first meetings were not so progressive, the second were, the third were”, the president said, adding that in his opinion “we will be able to avoid a default and we will be able to do something good”.
Top negotiators on McCarthy’s team said after Friday night’s session that they were unsure about next steps.
“We’re back in talks, we’ve had very frank discussions, talking about where we are, what we need to do and what’s reasonably acceptable,” said Rep. Garrett, a Louisiana Republican, a key McCarthy ally. Graves said. His negotiating team…
Republican Representative Patrick McHenry was asked if he was confident of reaching an agreement with the White House on the budget issue, and he replied, “No.”
Coming out of the night’s session, Biden adviser Steve Ritchetti, the head of the Democratic caucus, said he was hopeful. He said, ‘We will continue to work.
Biden had already made plans to cut short his trip to Japan and is expected to return to Washington on Sunday night.
McCarthy has said he hopes a resolution to the impasse will be “easier” if Biden’s team agrees to some of the spending cuts Republicans are demanding. The main hurdle revolves around the fiscal year 2024 budget, according to a person familiar with the discussions who spoke on condition of anonymity. Democrats fundamentally oppose the deep cuts proposed by Republicans, viewing them as potentially harmful to Americans and insisting that Republicans accept tax increases for the richest and spending cuts to reduce the deficit. .
