House Speaker Kevin McCarthy will put his shaky control of the thin Republican majority on the line this week with a bid to pass a bill slashing spending that is designed to jam President Joe Biden over the looming government debt crisis.
The standoff is deepening between the Republican speaker and the Democratic president, which could be fateful for the country and both their political careers. And the ability of each side to unify their parties and shape public opinion to avoid – or dispense – blame will be crucial.
The clash is over the need to raise the government’s borrowing authority within months, without which the United States will default on its debts in a way that could send the domestic and global economies spiraling and could inflict deep pain and job losses on Americans. Republicans are seeking to use the situation as leverage to gut Biden’s domestic program.
The president, as he moves toward making his reelection campaign official as early as this week, says the GOP must not hold the nation hostage to what he says is an extreme agenda. The debt ceiling showdown is important to Biden as he seeks to protect the legislative achievements of his term so far and to portray an image of strength and purpose. He’s been building toward a reelection pitch partly by portraying House Republicans as the epitome of the chaos and disruption of ex-President Donald Trump, who is leading polls of the GOP primary.
McCarthy is seeking to unite his party around him to pass a bill that would raise the debt ceiling for a year in exchange for deep spending cuts. The measure would limit growth in government spending to 1% a year, block student loan forgiveness, rescind new funding for the Internal Revenue Service, introduce tougher work requirements for Medicaid, and repeal green energy tax credits in an effort to strangle Biden’s attempts to create a low-carbon economy to fight climate change.
A source involved in the effort told CNN’s Manu Raju Monday that the speaker’s whip team had been working all weekend to secure the 218 votes needed for passage and were confident they would win the critical vote later this week. But some stumbling blocks remain on details of the Medicaid and energy tax break issues.
Even if it makes it out of the House, the measure has no chance of defusing the situation or of winning the battle for the GOP since it won’t pass in the Democratic-led Senate. The approach is meant to make it look to the public like Biden is being obstructive and should hold the blame for any debt default.
The White House has said it won’t negotiate over a debt ceiling increase – which is Congress’ responsibility – and will only accept a clean proposal to raise the nation’s borrowing limit. The speaker, however, on Sunday was adamant that Biden would have to climb down from that position as the country races closer to a crisis that could peak sometime this summer.
“We will hold a vote this week, and we will pass it, and we will send it to the Senate,” McCarthy said on Fox, claiming Republicans were the only party in Washington with a responsible plan to raise the debt limit and criticizing Biden’s refusal to negotiate.
“He needs to show leadership and come to the negotiating table, instead of put us in default. This is risky, what he’s doing. He’s threatening the markets,” the California Republican asserted.
But the speaker left himself little political breathing room.
There remain huge questions over whether McCarthy, presiding over a tiny majority that’s beset by ideological divides, can unite his troops behind his effort. And if he can’t pass even this preliminary messaging bill, his authority will be in tatters.
Some Republicans are demanding spending cuts that would be politically impossible for Biden to agree to. Others may refuse to vote to raise the debt ceiling whatever happens. More moderate Republicans worry about the extreme factions of their party as they contemplate reelection bids. McCarthy, meanwhile, would likely pay with his job if he were forced to use Democratic votes to raise the debt ceiling – currently at over $31 trillion. This could set up a direct clash between McCarthy’s personal ambition and the national interest.
There are risks for Biden, too. A prolonged crisis caused by the failure to lift the debt ceiling and the potential of tumbling stock markets would leave him deeply vulnerable as he enters a reelection race.
