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US President Joe Biden is meeting with the leaders of major US companies as he seeks support in Congress to increase the country’s debt limit. Senior US officials said this is necessary to avoid a potential economic recession.
Biden is scheduled to meet at the White House on Wednesday with the heads of major U.S. banks Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America, as well as the chief executives of major associations, the American Association of Retired Persons, real estate brokers and the Nasdaq Stock Exchange.
“Our markets are turbulent. American savings are at stake. The American people-your savings, your wallet-are directly affected by this,” Biden said in a speech at the beginning of the meeting.
“It doesn’t have to be this way. My Republican friends need to stop playing Russian roulette on the American economy.”
President, who is Work hard to win congressional approval One of his agenda is to call on Republicans to allow the passage of a bill drafted by the Democrats to suspend the US debt limit.
US officials warned that if the US debt ceiling fails to increase, it will disrupt global financial markets and may trigger a global economic recession. “We are turning to a disaster,” said U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.
“In the United States, we have always kept our basic promises. We repay our debts on time without exception,” Senator Chuck Schumer, the leader of the Democratic majority party in the Senate, said on Wednesday.
“For a long time, this has been the key to our economic success and our position in the global market,” said Schumer, who planned a showdown with Republicans in the Senate later on Wednesday.
Republicans in the House oppose the Democrats’ spending and tax plans and are using procedural rules called obstruction bills to block a bill that would suspend legal restrictions on the issuance of US debt.
Democrats with 50 seats in the evenly divided Senate need 10 Republicans to vote with them for the bill to be voted on.
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Mitch McConnell) said on Wednesday: “For three months, most people have known that such votes will have nowhere to go.” McConnell said that Democrats “played with little politics. “And “failed to govern.”
“They want to turn their failure into a crisis for others,” he added.
Yellen has said that if the debt ceiling is not raised, the US government will run out of cash before October 18. This means that the United States will not be able to pay old people Social Security benefits or interest on existing debts.
The White House Council of Economic Advisers said in a new report: “The default will cause shock waves in global financial markets and may lead to the freezing of global credit markets and the collapse of stock markets.”
The Bipartisan Policy Center predicted on Wednesday that unemployment benefits due on October 20 may be postponed, and federal wages for civilian employees due on October 29 may also be postponed. Medical insurance payments to doctors may also be delayed.
Nevertheless, the bond rating company Moody’s Investor Services said on Tuesday that it expects Washington to raise the debt ceiling.
Democrats have other options to ensure that the debt ceiling is raised.
One approach that Schumer calls risky and complicated is to modify the budget and increase the debt ceiling only if the Democrats vote.
Using the October 18 deadline set by Yellen, this may take about two weeks to complete. McConnell said on Wednesday that Republicans will allow the budget process to proceed more quickly.
Biden said Tuesday that another option that is “really possible” is for Democrats to change the Senate’s rules to remove the obstruction bill and allow the debt ceiling to be raised.
The Democrats have been discussing whether to end obstructions in this Congress to defeat the Republicans. Oppose the right to vote.
Senate rules usually require 60 votes to end legislative debates and allow votes for approval, but there is one exception to the annual budget.
The last time Congress raised the debt limit in 2019 under the leadership of former President Donald Trump.
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