WASHINGTON ( Associated Press) – House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said Sunday that he hopes to discuss “how we can raise the debt ceiling in an appropriate and responsible way” with President Joe Biden when they meet on Wednesday.
McCarthy, a California Republican, said he wants to address spending cuts along with raising the debt ceiling, even though the White House declined to link those two issues. It will be the first meeting at the official residence since McCarthy was elected to the post in early January.
The legislator promised that cuts to Social Security and Medicare would not be discussed.
“I know the president said he didn’t want to have any discussion (about cuts), but I think it’s very important that our entire government is designed to find a deal,” McCarthy told CBS. told “Face the Nation”.
McCarthy was elected speaker of the lower house on 7 January after 15 rounds of voting.
News of the long-awaited White House meeting comes alongside the debt ceiling crisis and House Republicans are bracing for a confrontation.
McCarthy was eager to bring Biden to the negotiating table in hopes of delivering on promises made by the GOP leader during his campaign to head the House to reduce federal spending at the 2022 budget level, which would mean 8 A substantial budget cut of .
The White House has made it clear that Biden is not ready to take political concessions in exchange for lifting the debt limit. The federal government reached that limit in early January, and the Treasury Department has implemented extraordinary measures to stave off a potential default for at least a few more months.
