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HIROSHIMA, May 21 (AP) President Joe Biden said Sunday that Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives must reverse their “extreme stance” in currently stalled talks on raising the U.S. debt ceiling and won’t make a deal. Avoid catastrophic default by reaching agreements only on their terms.
To get the talks back on track, Biden plans to call US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Air Force One en route back to Washington after the G7 summit in Japan. World leaders at the meeting expressed concern about the dire global consequences if the United States fails to meet its financial obligations.
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“It’s time for Republicans to accept that there is no bipartisan agreement that can be made completely, exactly on their partisan terms,” ​​Biden said at a news conference before leaving office. The president said he had done his part An attempt to raise borrowing limits so the U.S. government can keep paying its bills by agreeing to deep spending cuts. “It’s time for the other side to move away from extreme positions,” he said.
Biden had planned to travel from Hiroshima to Papua New Guinea and Australia, but the trip was cut short due to tense negotiations with Capitol Hill.
“My guess is he’s going to want to deal with me directly to make sure we’re all on the same page,” Biden said of McCarthy ahead of their expected conversation. The president said that despite the differences, a compromise was still achievable.
“I hope Speaker McCarthy is waiting to negotiate with me when I get home,” he said. “I’m waiting to find out.”
Republican lawmakers have stuck to their demands for deep spending cuts, rejecting an alternative plan from the White House to reduce the deficit.
McCarthy tweeted Saturday that it was the White House that “backtracked on negotiations.”
The spokesperson argued that Biden “would rather be the first president in history to default on his debt than risk the wrath of the radical socialists who are now calling the shots for the Democratic Party.”
Republicans want the Medicaid work requirement, even as the Biden administration pushes back that millions of people could lose coverage.
Republicans have also introduced new food aid cuts by limiting states’ ability to waive work requirements in places with high unemployment.
When the idea was introduced under President Donald Trump, an estimated 700,000 people would lose their food benefits.
Republican lawmakers are also seeking to cut IRS funding and have asked the White House to accept parts of their proposed immigration overhaul.
The White House’s countermeasure is to keep defense and nondefense spending the same next year, which would save $90 billion in the 2024 budget year and $1 trillion over 10 years.
“I think we can make a deal,” Biden said, though he added to Republicans: “I can’t guarantee they won’t force a default by doing something outrageous.”
Republicans also rejected White House proposals to raise revenue to further reduce the deficit. Among the proposals Republicans oppose are policies that would make Medicare reduce prescription drug costs and close a dozen tax loopholes.
Republicans have resisted rolling back Trump-era tax breaks for businesses and wealthy families, as Biden’s own budget proposal has done.
Still, Biden insisted that “income will not be excluded.”
For months, Biden has resisted negotiating the debt ceiling, arguing that Republicans in Congress are trying to use the borrowing limit vote as leverage to force the administration to back down on other policy priorities.
But with the Treasury Department saying it could run out of cash as soon as June 1 and Republicans putting their own legislation on the table, the White House kicked off negotiations on a budget deal that could come with a debt ceiling hike.
The decision to speak to McCarthy on the phone comes after another stop-and-go day with no signs of progress. The food was delivered to the negotiating room at the Capitol on Saturday morning and was transported several hours later. However, the talks may resume after Biden speaks with McCarthy later on Sunday.
Biden sought to reassure leaders at a gathering of the world’s most powerful democracies that the United States would not default. Leaders are concerned but largely confident that Biden and U.S. lawmakers will resolve the crisis, U.S. officials said.
However, the president said he was ruling out taking action on his own to avoid a default. Any such steps, including a proposal to invoke the 14th Amendment as a solution, would be blocked in court.
“I think it’s an unresolved issue,” Biden said, adding that he wanted to try to get the Justice Department to weigh in on the concept going forward. (Associated Press)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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