On Saturday night, Negotiators for US President Joe Biden and Republican Congressional Leaders finally came to the tentative US debt ceiling agreement after weeks of delay.
What is the Complete News?
Republican congressional leaders and President Biden’s negotiators reach a tentative agreement in principle to raise the debt ceiling after weeks of delays. However, the agreement raised fears about a catastrophic default.
Earlier Saturday evening, Biden and McCarthy had some words on the phone after hours of negotiations on the debt ceiling deal. Biden made a statement that the agreement could protect my and Congressional Democrats’ key priorities.
On Saturday morning, Kevin McCarthy also had a talk with reporters, saying he was optimistic that a deal would be reached. McCarthy shared a post saying after he refused to negotiate for months, we’ve reached an agreement that could be worthy for all the Americans on his Twitter handle.
I just got off the phone with the president a bit ago. After he wasted time and refused to negotiate for months, we've come to an agreement in principle that is worthy of the American people.
I'll deliver a statement at 9:10pm ET. Watch here:https://t.co/vmn31INPH5
— Kevin McCarthy (@SpeakerMcCarthy) May 28, 2023
During a news conference, McCarthy said that the bill’s text would be publicly posted by Sunday and a House vote to take place on Wednesday. He added he will again talk to Biden on Sunday regarding this.
What are the Exact Details of the Deal?
However, the exact details of the deal are not clear yet. The only thing known is that it would raise the debt limit for two years and keep non-defense spending flat for the 2023 fiscal year.
Later in the 2025 fiscal year, it would increase by 1% only. It would also maintain funding for veterans’ medical care programs, including PACT Act, expanding benefits to 3.5 million veterans exposed to toxic burn pits.
However, the deal contains no drastic changes to Medicaid. But it is still unclear that what would be the impact on both TANF and SNAP Programs.
What’s Next?
Now, lawmakers have to transform the agreement into legislative text. It is a process that would take several days to complete as it passes through both chambers of Congress. It also has to overcome opposition from both parties’ members.
However, passing the agreement would likely require the votes of dozens of Democrats. But both the Senate and House complicated the timeline for passing the bill by recessing for the Memorial Day holiday.
Over the past few weeks, Biden and McCarthy met several times to resolve their differences and to reach a conclusion. They both described their meetings as productive. But they could agree on and sell to their constituencies proved difficult.
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