House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) said that President Joe Biden has been absent in the negotiation of the country's debt ceiling.
McCarthy expressed the concern with reporters Monday after the GOP-led House passed a bill to raise the debt limit.
Kevin McCarthy: Joe Biden Remains Absent amid Debt Ceiling Negotiations . He’s absent because he doesn’t have a clue. It’s embarrassing https://t.co/XPd1lAvcrl
— “ TRUTH Speaker” (@FreeAdvice767) May 1, 2023
“The president still hasn’t talked to me,” McCarthy said from Israel.
“'I’m a little like Netanyahu,' he added in reference to Biden’s refusal to also speak with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after his recent election victory," the report added.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has accepted an invitation to meet with President Joe Biden on May 9 about the debt ceilinghttps://t.co/W8fTlPEBQv
— CNN (@CNN) May 2, 2023
Following McCarthy's comments, Biden's team finally responded after weeks of silence.
"House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has accepted an invitation to meet with President Joe Biden on May 9 about the debt ceiling, according to a source familiar, setting the stage for a high-stakes moment in the debt ceiling standoff," CNN reported Tuesday.
"Biden invited all four Congressional leaders to the meeting," the report added. "Biden’s calls came after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen notified lawmakers on Monday that the US could default on its debt by June 1."
Biden invites Kevin McCarthy to debt ceiling talks at White House as Treasury warns of default https://t.co/CXq3WBlmV7 pic.twitter.com/9BzwECnMJP
— New York Post (@nypost) May 1, 2023
“In My January 13 letter, I noted that it was unlikely that cash and extraordinary measures would be exhausted before early June," Yellen wrote in her Monday letter.
"After reviewing recent federal tax receipts, our best estimate is that we will be unable to continue to satisfy all of the government’s obligations by early June, and potentially as early as June 1, if Congress does not raise or suspend the debt limit before that time,” she added.
McCarthy's GOP-led bill includes canceling funding toward Biden's student loan forgiveness plan. In addition, the bill would reverse some approvals from the left's spending package from last year, two moves Biden does not want to see take place during his administration.
The meeting between the House's top leaders with Biden will be interesting to watch as the government comes down to the final days before its funding would run out to find a potential short-term solution to its problem.
