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The peace offer comes as Senate Republicans are set to reject Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s third effort in two weeks to raise the debt ceiling, or the ceiling on what the government borrows for. pay the bills. Democrats need 10 Republican votes Wednesday afternoon to push through debt-limit-lifting legislation, which they could then approve by a simple majority. But GOP senators are determined not to help the majority tackle the borrowing limit as Democrats pursue multibillion-dollar spending plans.
Democratic leaders will use the failed vote to continue hammering Republicans as irresponsible for playing with an issue that often requires bipartisan cooperation and could have huge ramifications for the global economy. Meanwhile, the Biden administration has said the Treasury Department could run out of money in as little as two weeks. Ahead of the vote, Senate Democrats had planned to meet at a special caucus meeting to discuss the debt cliff approach.
“Democrats have been clear from the start we will do the responsible thing,” Schumer said Wednesday morning. “The Republican obstruction of the debt ceiling was reckless, irresponsible, but today Republicans will still have the opportunity to get what they asked for … we can proceed with final passage of this bill .
Time is running out, and with neither side showing flaws in their resolve, Democrats are considering a number of exits, including making an exception to the filibuster rules for debt ceiling legislation, known as exclusion name. It would take away the Republicans’ ability to block the effort.
But blowing up the obstruction to raise the debt ceiling only works if all Democrats agree. President Joe Biden reported on Tuesday that an obstruction workaround was under discussion, while Senator Joe Manchin (DW.Va.) rejected the idea on Wednesday morning. Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D-Arizona), another key Senate centrist, has not indicated whether she will support this approach, which both sides could use as a weapon to advance their political priorities.
“My point is that if the Republicans don’t fend for themselves, we should have an exception on this issue,” said Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, Democrat on the budget committee, after the Democrats in the Senate. met with White House officials Wednesday morning. “We are now on the brink and any day you could have a downgrade in our national credit rating. Time is therefore running out. ”
Meanwhile, Democrats insist they will not use the budget reconciliation process to raise the debt ceiling on their own, as the Republicans have demanded. Democratic leaders say reconciliation, or the same special fiscal maneuver Democrats are deploying to push through Biden’s massive social spending plans, could prove long and arduous.
McConnell said Wednesday morning that Democrats “spent two and a half months doing nothing and now they’re complaining about running out of time.” He insisted that the majority party had ample clue to form an idea using reconciliation.
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) noted that even rating agency Moody’s expects Democrats to raise the debt ceiling through a reconciliation in time to avoid exceeding the borrowing limit.
“I’m telling people that there will be no default and that Democrats have proven that they can tax how they want, spend how they want and raise the debt ceiling however they want,” Romney said . “Moody’s came out yesterday and said don’t worry, and I think that’s at least as reassuring as my comments.”
But Democrats came out of the festive lunches Tuesday even more determined not to use the special budget process. Even Senator Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Who expressed last week that he was open to the use of reconciliation, is now closing the door to the possibility.
“We’re not doing it on reconciliation,” Kaine said. “If we want to do it, we would love the help of the Republicans. But we’re not going to do it on reconciliation.
If Senate Democrats decide to pull the cord of reconciliation, some Republicans have demonstrated a willingness to ensure the process moves forward quickly, promising to throw up some GOP roadblocks.
“I don’t anticipate it will be a prolonged exercise,” Senator Shelley Moore Capito (RW.Va.) said on Tuesday. “I can’t speak for everyone, but I think generally, given the time constraints, I’m probably letting them do what they need to do.”
But Democrats continue to distance themselves from reconciliation as an option, which Republicans could ultimately use as a political stick midway through next year if the majority party is forced to settle on a new limit figure. of debt during the process.
After meeting with White House officials Wednesday morning, Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) Stressed that “Senate Democrats remain united on debt.”
“The Republicans must allow us this vote tonight and we will own it because they are afraid of it,” she said. “We are governing and we are not going to let a bunch of interest rates go up and wreak havoc across this country just because they are trying to play politics. Now is the time to rule.
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