United States President Joe Biden this Sunday described as “unacceptable” proposals by Republicans to raise the country’s debt ceiling and thus avoid default.
“It’s time for the other side to abandon their extreme positions, because most of what they have proposed is unacceptable,” Biden told reporters during the G7 summit in Japan.
Talks to prevent the United States from reaching a crisis and running out of resources have stalled between opposition leaders in the government and Congress, who are demanding sharp cuts in spending from the executive in exchange for raising the so-called “cap”. Are. Loan that allows you to issue more credit.
For this reason, Biden assured in the last hours that he would speak directly with Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy during his Air Force One flight on Sunday to “reach an agreement”.
He also said that he was looking for “an ambiguous constitutional clause in the 14th Amendment”, which states that the legality of the public debt “shall not be in question,” and potentially allows the president to bypass Congress and issue the debt himself. Authorizes to increase the limit.
The 14th Amendment, added to the Constitution in 1868, stipulates that “the validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, (…) shall not be called in question”, i.e., already voted expenditure payments To be.
“I think we have the authority. The question is whether it can be done and implemented in time,” he said.
This was followed by the Treasury Department announcing that the United States government could run out of money by June 1, causing massive economic disruption in the country and around the planet.
Raising the debt ceiling is typically a controversial annual process, yet this year the GOP “for its part has turned the threat of default into a powerful lever to try to force Biden to accept spending cuts.” Have given.” Biden attacked his opponents in the US. The economy is at risk on political points.
Discussions stalled over the weekend in Washington as the two sides traded hits.
White House spokesman Andrew Bates tweeted, “We are doing 0 lawsuits to prevent default. The only hostage is you.”
