House Majority Leader Steve Scalise said Sunday that it’s time for President Biden to come to the negotiating table in the wake of House Republicans passing a bill to raise the debt ceiling and avoid default.
The legislation, which Senate Democrats and the White House say is a non-starter, calls for cutting trillions in federal spending while raising the debt limit for one year. The U.S. is set to default on its loans in the coming months unless the debt ceiling is raised.
“We just passed a bill that addresses the debt ceiling. And for all that we hear from our Senate friends, they’ve yet to pass anything. If they got a better idea, I want to see that bill and tell them to pass it through the Senate,” Mr. Scalise, Louisiana Republican, said on ABC’s “This Week.” “It’s time now for the president to get in this game, get off the sidelines and let’s start negotiating and figuring this out — not in June when we get into the midnight hour, but today.”
The majority of Senate Democrats are sticking by President Biden in his refusal to negotiate spending cuts to raise the debt ceiling, but cracks have begun to emerge among more moderate and swing-district Democrats who say the U.S. can’t risk defaulting.
It’s been months since House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, California Republican, and Mr. Biden sat down to discuss the impending fiscal cliff.
“We just passed the bill through the House, and we’ve been very vocal. It’s been over two months since President Biden has sat down with Speaker McCarthy to have negotiations,” Mr. Scalise said. “President Biden is clearly trying to run out the clock and create a debt crisis. That’s irresponsible.”
• Ramsey Touchberry can be reached at rtouchberry@washingtontimes.com.
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