U.S. Sens. Katie Britt (R-Montgomery) and Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) are putting pressure on President Biden to negotiate with Republicans on raising the debt ceiling.
The Republicans in the House, led by Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), have already passed a funding bill that would increase the debt limit and cut future spending.
“The House has taken a responsible first step in coming to the table with their proposals, Britt said. “It is imperative that the President now do the same.”
The House has taken a responsible first step in coming to the table with their proposals. It is imperative that the President now do the same.https://t.co/EU56uqbneu
— Senator Katie Boyd Britt (@SenKatieBritt) May 9, 2023
The White House continues to insist that there will be no negotiations on future spending unless Congress first passes a “clean” debt limit increase.
“What we hope comes out of this is that Speaker McCarthy does the right thing,” said White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. “The president’s going to be as clear as he’s been these last several months … which is, they need to do their job. They need to get this done on the behalf of the American people and do their jobs.”
Britt and Tuberville joined a letter led by U.S. Sen Mike Lee (R-Utah) and signed by 40 other Republican senators, calling on Biden to “come to the table” and make a deal with McCarthy on raising the debt ceiling.
“The Senate Republican conference is united behind the House Republican conference in support of spending cuts and structural budget reform as a starting point for negotiations on the debt ceiling,” the members of Congress said in the letter. “Our economy is in free fall due to unsustainable fiscal policies. This trajectory must be addressed with fiscal reforms. Moreover, recent Treasury projections have reinforced the urgency of addressing the debt ceiling. The House has taken a responsible first step in coming to the table with their proposals. It is imperative that the president now do the same.”
They also reiterated that they will not vote for anything that does not include real spending reforms.
“As such, we will not be voting for cloture on any bill that raises the debt ceiling without substantive spending and budget reforms,” the letter said.
Yaffee is a contributing writer to Yellowhammer News and hosts “The Yaffee Program” weekdays 9-11 a.m. on WVNN. You can follow him on Twitter @Yaffee
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