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- McConnell seems more determined than ever to resist efforts to raise the debt ceiling with Democrats.
- “It’s hard to be in the majority. [Democrats] are the ones who will raise the debt ceiling, ”he told Punchbowl News.
- He threatens to deepen a perilous confrontation between Democrats and Republicans that could derail the economic recovery.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell seems more determined than ever to stop the Republican line from breaking the debt ceiling.
In an interview with Punchbowl News, the Kentucky Republican fired a warning shot at Democrats as he deepened a point of view he had expressed publicly since late July.
“It is their obligation. They should step up their efforts. It is difficult to be in the majority. They are the ones who will raise the debt ceiling,” he said, adding: “You think I bluffing? “
McConnell insisted that the United States should never default on its debt payments and recalled its previous support for increasing the cap to cover spending on which Republicans and Congressional Democrats had agreed. agreements. He said that was not the case this year as Democrats passed a $ 1.9 trillion stimulus bill along party lines. They are also preparing another spending program to strengthen the social safety net.
“So the only problem is who is responsible for doing it? A Democratic President, a Democratic House, a Democratic Senate,” he told Punchbowl News.
McConnell’s warning threatens to amplify a perilous showdown between Republicans and Democrats over renewing the nation’s ability to pay its bills, known as the debt ceiling. The Treasury Department makes emergency cash payments to keep federal operations going, saving lawmakers extra time.
But if Congress fails to agree on renewing the debt ceiling on time, experts say it could shake up financial markets and derail the economic recovery as the United States’ ability to make payments on its national debt of $ 28 trillion would be halted.
Democrats are pressuring Republicans to raise the debt ceiling alongside them, as GOP lawmakers have done three times under the Trump administration.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi recently ruled out including an increase in the debt ceiling in her social spending bill. This legislation goes through the reconciliation process that only requires a simple majority vote and allows Democrats to bypass the GOP’s fierce resistance to the legislation.
A recent note from the non-partisan congressional research service indicated that President Donald Trump added $ 5.4 trillion to the national debt from the last suspension of the debt ceiling in July 2019 until the end of his administration. in January 2021. The analysis circulated among Democratic lawmakers.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer cited the numbers Monday as he tackled Republican resistance on the issue. “Be clear: taking debt hostage and playing games with the full faith and credit of the United States is reckless, irresponsible and will hurt every American,” he said in a Senate speech. “It’s a complete non-starter.”
The debt ceiling is the legal limit that the Treasury Department can borrow to maintain federal operations authorized by Congress. Raising the debt ceiling does not give the green light to new federal spending, it only allows the United States to repay existing spending.
Democrats could add the debt ceiling provision to an emergency spending bill that the White House wants Congress to approve this month to fund relief efforts after Hurricane Ida and the fires in forest in the western United States, along with funding to avoid government shutdown in late September. This tactic could persuade some Republicans to support the legislation.
But 46 Senate Republicans signed a letter in August pledging not to join Democrats in raising the debt ceiling. It is also unclear whether there would be enough Republican votes in the House.
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