Republican congressional leaders said on Thursday they were making progress toward a deal with President Biden to raise the debt ceiling while cutting spending, avoiding the disappointment of lawmakers from both parties in a deal that is still being worked out. I warned you not to.
Speaker Kevin McCarthy told reporters at the Capitol that negotiators had been negotiating “well past midnight” in an attempt to find a solution to avoid default by the scheduled June 1 deadline. He said he went ahead and resumed negotiations late Thursday morning. He said there were still “unresolved issues” and had instructed negotiators to work “24/7” until a deal was reached.
McCarthy nodded at growing concerns among some far-right Republicans that the Republicans were making too many concessions in the talks, saying, “At the end of the day, everyone can be happy.” I can’t imagine,” he said. “That’s not how this system works.”
Democrats, too, have been increasingly concerned that Mr. Biden would go too far with Republican demands, such as spending cuts and better working conditions for public benefits. They had gathered at the Capitol at noon to discuss the status of the negotiations.
Lawmakers were preparing to leave Washington late Thursday for a Memorial Day holiday, but talks are expected to continue into the weekend, with lawmakers urging them to come back and vote if a deal is reached. was
Rep. Patrick T. McHenry of North Carolina, one of McCarthy’s key negotiators, said there were still “thorny issues” left unresolved, chief among them spending. He acknowledged that there is a cap and that the issue is a “difficult one” for Democrats to accept.
“We still have legislative and policy work to do,” McHenry said. “All those details really lead us to being able to solve this problem.”
South Dakota’s top congressman, Rep. Dusty Johnson, said: “We don’t have a deal yet, so until we do, I don’t think we’ll know exactly what form the coalition will take.” . McCarthy’s ally. “But listen, Kevin McCarthy understands how conservative his conference is.
As negotiators nibbled closer to a deal, far-right Republican lawmakers openly expressed concern that McCarthy would sign a compromise deal deemed unconservative. Several right-wing Republican lawmakers have already vowed to oppose any compromise that backs away from the cuts that are part of the debt-restraint bill, which cuts domestic spending by an average of 18% over a decade.
“Republicans shouldn’t make bad deals,” influential conservative Texas Rep. Chip Roy told a local radio station, shortly after he said, “We need to be candid with our colleagues and leadership.” posted on twitter. Because he didn’t like “the direction they were going.”
South Carolina Rep. Ralph Norman said he would reserve judgment on how to vote on the compromise until he saw the bill, but added, “What I just saw is not good.”
Former President Donald J. Trump echoed the sentiment that Republicans should force a default if negotiations don’t get the results they want. McCarthy told reporters that he briefly spoke with Trump about the negotiations. “It just came to me for a second,” said the speaker. “He said, ‘Make sure you get a good deal.'”
After teeing off at his golf course outside Washington, Trump approached a New York Times reporter with an iPhone and showed him the call with McCarthy.
Mr Trump described his call as “a quick, quick conversation” and said it would be “interesting, but it won’t be easy.”
“They have been wasting money on nonsense for three years,” he added.
Luke Broadwater and Stephanie Lai Contributing to the report from Washington, Alan Blinder Originally from Sterling, Virginia.
