The meeting of US President Joe Biden with the leaders of Congress on the issue of raising the national debt ceiling ended without significant results. It is reported by Interfax with reference to the American media.
It is noted that Biden, after the talks, strongly opposed the idea of a default.
“I made it clear during our meeting that default is not an option. I repeated this over and over. America is not a nation of idlers. We pay our bills, and default prevention is the primary responsibility of Congress,” the president said.
He noted that he agrees with the promise of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell that the US will not default.
McConnell told reporters after the meeting, “The United States has never defaulted on its debt and never will.”
At the same time, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy lamented that during the meeting he did not see “any new movement” in the negotiating positions on the debt limit.
“All participants in this meeting confirmed the positions they were in before it,” McCarthy concluded.
The Republican noted that he never received an answer from Biden on the question of in which budget items one can find opportunities for savings.
All but McCarthy agreed to eliminate the threat of default, according to Democratic Party leaders who attended the meeting.
“We asked Speaker McCarthy bluntly, ‘Will he take default off the agenda? He refused,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said.
Biden said congressional leaders would continue discussions and meet again on Friday.
“In the meantime, our employees are going to meet today and daily (…) And everyone present at the meeting understood the risk of default. Our economy would fall into a significant recession,” he stressed.
Earlier, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned of serious consequences that could occur if the US Congress does not raise the national debt limit.
“What happens if Congress fails to fulfill its obligations? There are simply no good options,” Yellen told ABC.
Republicans in the House of Representatives on April 26 approved a bill that would raise the national debt limit by $1.5 trillion and cut government spending by $4.8 trillion. However, Biden and Democratic lawmakers object to spending cuts, demanding an increase in the ceiling without additional conditions.
When asked if Biden could raise the national debt ceiling bypassing Congress, using the appropriate constitutional amendment, Yellen replied that the situation “should not get to this point.”
“It will be a constitutional crisis,” she said.
Source: Rosbalt
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