Speaker Kevin McCarthy spent Monday in a largely desolate Capitol Building to gain support for his compromise on the debt limit, despite claims that he had made promises to become speaker.
The California Republican has been saying for days that he can “get to yes”, on the passage of the House agreement, which is a cross-party deal to stop the country from defaulting its $31.4 trillion debt. The task of securing enough votes on the House floor to pass the agreement he made with President Joe Biden over the weekend is already proving more difficult than he anticipated.
A few Republicans suggested that the Rules Committee could be used to prevent the 99-page package being brought to the floor. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, hinted further at this strategy on Monday afternoon.
The Texas Republican stated on Twitter an “explicit agreement” was made in private negotiations to elect McCarthy as speaker: No bill would be brought to the floor of the House without “unanimous support” from the Rules Committee. Roy is a member.
Holdups, such as a delay to the House floor debate, would cost leaders valuable time when it comes to passing the bill through the two chambers prior the deadline expected for the nation’s borrowing power. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has forecast that the X-date is June 5, which is now less than a week from now.
Republicans who are working to gain support for this bill have already cast doubt on Roy’s claim that he made a secret commitment.
“If these conversations occurred, the rest were unaware.” “I doubt it,” said Rep. Dusty Johnson, (R-S.D.). On Monday, Johnson told reporters in the Capitol that he doubted it.
“I like rules.” Johnson said that when someone tells him something must be done a certain way he immediately gets out his rule book. Johnson said, “I checked and there was no rule stating that a decision must be unanimously made by the Rules Committee.”
McCarthy spent Memorial Day trying to reach a consensus in his Capitol suite while Biden administration officials tried to rally Democratic support for the agreement. Top White House officials held virtual meetings with lawmakers Monday afternoon to discuss the parts of the deal that have raised the most concern . These included changes to the energy policy, increased spending limits, and work requirements for anti-poverty program.
Shalanda young, White House Budget Director, has reminded lawmakers that the ultimate aim in negotiations is to avoid a default on debt. She also said that a bipartisan agreement makes it easier for the government to be funded in the fiscal year which begins in October.
The legislation, which would also extend the debt ceiling beyond the presidential election of 2024, would freeze the non-defense budget for the next fiscal year and increase defense funding by approximately 3.5 percent. Young, NBC’s The Today Show, said that the agreement was “about on par” with prior budget agreements. She cited her experience in negotiating previous bipartisan spending deals during her years as a House appropriators aide.
Young said, “This was a compromise.” “Neither side gets what they want.”
The White House received some good news this weekend when the New Democratic Coalition, a group of 98 centrists that is most likely to support the bipartisan bill, released a press release announcing their support. According to a Democratic aide, who requested anonymity to speak freely on the discussions, the Congressional Black Caucus also did its own whipping Monday afternoon.
According to the aide who described this as the usual push-pull from members, progressive House members who had expressed frustration about the new requirements for two government assistance programs – TANF and SNAP – are still mostly no. The aide stated that, all things considered, there is optimism regarding the agreement passing the House in this week.
Republican lawmakers have already begun to discuss further spending cuts, even though the debt package would set limits on the fiscal year beginning in October.
Rep. Stephanie Bice, R-Okla., told reporters Monday that “this is just the beginning.” “We have certainly hoped to see more spending cuts. It remains to be determined whether we will succeed in completing this process through the appropriations.
According to lawmakers, the Congressional Budget Office provided Republicans with an initial estimate of how the debt limit package could affect federal spending. They predicted that it would reduce about $2.1 trillion if funding limits are adhered to for six years.
Myah WARD contributed to this report.
