Most voters were happy with the debt ceiling bill and wanted to see it pass Congress – even though more conservative lawmakers railed against Speaker Kevin McCarthy for striking the deal with President Joe Biden.

A new Rasmussen Reports poll shows that McCarthy’s approval rating has jumped by 10 percent since the beginning of the year – and after he reached the deal with the president to raise the debt ceiling.

The results are indicative of Americans’ desire to see more bipartisanship in Washington, D.C., while members of McCarthy’s own party lamented the bill and slammed the Speaker for agreeing to it.

The California lawmaker’s prominence in striking the deal is likely contributing to his polling jump from 40 percent approval in January to 50 percent approval in the survey conducted May 30 through June 1.

Thirty-nine percent of the 1,012 likely voters polled view McCarthy unfavorably and 11 percent aren’t sure how they feel about the Republican House Speaker.

Multiple conservative members of the House and Republican members of the Senate were not happy with McCarthy striking the deal with Biden and claimed that the provisions don’t go far enough.

Additionally, 69 percent of Democrats and 48 percent of Republicans voters said that they are in favor of Congress passing the compromise bill.

President Biden on Saturday signed a bill that lifts the U.S. government’s $31.4 trillion debt ceiling, averting what would have been a first-ever federal default.

The House of Representatives and the Senate passed the legislation last week after Biden and McCarthy reached an agreement following months of tense negotiations.

The Treasury Department had warned it would be unable to pay all its bills on Monday if Congress failed to act by then, which would have triggered an unprecedented default.

The White House released a 10-second video clip of Biden signing the bill in the Oval Office, but opted to avoid the type of public ceremony that often accompanies the signing of hard-fought measures.

Republicans had refused to raise the country’s borrowing limit unless Democrats agreed to cut spending, leading to a standoff that was not resolved until weeks of intense negotiations between the White House and McCarthy.

The final agreement, passed by the House on Wednesday and the Senate on Thursday, suspends the debt limit until 2025 – after the next presidential election – and restricts government spending. 

It gives lawmakers budget targets for the next two years in hopes of assuring fiscal stability as the political season heats up.

Raising the nation’s debt limit, now at $31.4 trillion, will ensure that the government can borrow to pay debts already incurred.

‘Passing this budget agreement was critical. The stakes could not have been higher,’ Biden said in a speech from the Oval Office on Friday evening. ‘Nothing would have been more catastrophic,’ he said, than defaulting on the country’s debt.

‘No one got everything they wanted but the American people got what they needed,’ Biden said, highlighting the ‘compromise and consensus’ in the deal. ‘We averted an economic crisis and an economic collapse.’

‘Our economy would have been thrown in recession,’ Biden intoned in a low voice.

He also used the address to pledge to go after ‘tax cheats’ and hike taxes on the wealthy, even after Republican negotiators nixed his revenue proposals as a way to pay for spending that gets trimmed under the deal.

‘We also have to raise revenue to go after tax cheats and make sure everybody’s paying their fair share,’ Biden said.

He repeated his pledge not to hike taxes on people earning more than $400,000 per year, and defended a boost in funds for IRS audits and technology – although the debt deal actually pares back an $80 billion infusion by about $20 billion. 

He also called for closing ‘special interest tax loopholes for big oil, crypto traders, hedge fund billionaires, saving taxpayers billions of dollars.’

‘Republicans defended every single one of these special interest loopholes. Every single one. But I’m going to come back with your help. I’m going to win,’ he vowed – although to become law the legislation must originate in the Republican-dominated House.

Biden also used the opportunity to itemize the achievements of his first term as he runs for reelection, including support for high-tech manufacturing, infrastructure investments and financial incentives for fighting climate change. He also highlighted ways he blunted Republican efforts to roll back his agenda and achieve deeper cuts.

‘We´re cutting spending and bringing deficits down at the same time,’ Biden said. ‘We’re protecting important priorities from Social Security to Medicare to Medicaid to veterans to our transformational investments in infrastructure and clean energy.’

Biden’s remarks were the most detailed comments from the Democratic president on the compromise he and his staff negotiated. 

He largely remained quiet publicly during the high-stakes talks, a decision that frustrated some members of his party but was intended to give space for both sides to reach a deal and for lawmakers to vote it to his desk.

Biden praised McCarthy and his negotiators for operating in good faith, and all congressional leaders for ensuring swift passage of the legislation. ‘They acted responsibly, and put the good of the country ahead of politics,’ he said.

Overall, the 99-page bill restricts spending for the next two years and changes some policies, including imposing new work requirements for older Americans receiving food aid and greenlighting an Appalachian natural gas pipeline that many Democrats oppose. 

Some environmental rules were modified to help streamline approvals for infrastructure and energy projects – a move long sought by moderates in Congress.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates it could actually expand total eligibility for federal food assistance, with the elimination of work requirements for veterans, homeless people and young people leaving foster care.

The legislation also bolsters funds for defense and veterans, cuts back some new money for the Internal Revenue Service and rejects Biden’s call to roll back Trump-era tax breaks on corporations and the wealthy to help cover the nation´s deficits. 

But the White House said the IRS’ plans to step up enforcement of tax laws for high-income earners and corporations would continue.

The agreement imposes an automatic overall 1% cut to spending programs if Congress fails to approve its annual spending bills – a measure designed to pressure lawmakers of both parties to reach consensus before the end of the fiscal year in September.

In both chambers, more Democrats backed the legislation than Republicans, but both parties were critical to its passage. 

In the Senate the tally was 63-36 including 46 Democrats and independents and 17 Republicans in favor, 31 Republicans along with four Democrats and one independent who caucuses with the Democrats opposed.

The vote in the House was 314-117.

Biden signs bipartisan debt ceiling bill, extending limit to 2025 and averting catastrophic government default after months-long battle with Republicans

By Keith Griffith For Dailymail.com and Wires

Published: 11:29 EDT, 4 June 2023 | Updated: 11:29 EDT, 4 June 2023

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President Joe Biden on Saturday signed a bill that lifts the US government’s $31.4 trillion debt ceiling, averting what would have been a first-ever default.

The House of Representatives and the Senate passed the legislation this week after Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy reached an agreement following months of tense negotiations.

The Treasury Department had warned it would be unable to pay all its bills on Monday if Congress failed to act by then, which would have triggered an unprecedented default.

The White House released a 10-second video clip of Biden signing the bill in the Oval Office, but opted to avoid the type of public ceremony that often accompanies the signing of hard-fought measures.

Republicans had refused to raise the country’s borrowing limit unless Democrats agreed to cut spending, leading to a standoff that was not resolved until weeks of intense negotiations between the White House and McCarthy.

The final agreement, passed by the House on Wednesday and the Senate on Thursday, suspends the debt limit until 2025 – after the next presidential election – and restricts government spending. 

It gives lawmakers budget targets for the next two years in hopes of assuring fiscal stability as the political season heats up.

Raising the nation’s debt limit, now at $31.4 trillion, will ensure that the government can borrow to pay debts already incurred.

‘Passing this budget agreement was critical. The stakes could not have been higher,’ Biden said in a speech from the Oval Office on Friday evening. ‘Nothing would have been more catastrophic,’ he said, than defaulting on the country’s debt.

‘No one got everything they wanted but the American people got what they needed,’ Biden said, highlighting the ‘compromise and consensus’ in the deal. ‘We averted an economic crisis and an economic collapse.’

‘Our economy would have been thrown in recession,’ Biden intoned in a low voice.

He also used the address to pledge to go after ‘tax cheats’ and hike taxes on the wealthy, even after Republican negotiators nixed his revenue proposals as a way to pay for spending that gets trimmed under the deal.

‘We also have to raise revenue to go after tax cheats and make sure everybody’s paying their fair share,’ Biden said.

He repeated his pledge not to hike taxes on people earning more than $400,000 per year, and defended a boost in funds for IRS audits and technology – although the debt deal actually pares back an $80 billion infusion by about $20 billion. 

He also called for closing ‘special interest tax loopholes for big oil, crypto traders, hedge fund billionaires, saving taxpayers billions of dollars.’

‘Republicans defended every single one of these special interest loopholes. Every single one. But I’m going to come back with your help. I’m going to win,’ he vowed – although to become law the legislation must originate in the Republican-dominated House.

Biden also used the opportunity to itemize the achievements of his first term as he runs for reelection, including support for high-tech manufacturing, infrastructure investments and financial incentives for fighting climate change. He also highlighted ways he blunted Republican efforts to roll back his agenda and achieve deeper cuts.

‘We´re cutting spending and bringing deficits down at the same time,’ Biden said. ‘We’re protecting important priorities from Social Security to Medicare to Medicaid to veterans to our transformational investments in infrastructure and clean energy.’

Biden’s remarks were the most detailed comments from the Democratic president on the compromise he and his staff negotiated. 

He largely remained quiet publicly during the high-stakes talks, a decision that frustrated some members of his party but was intended to give space for both sides to reach a deal and for lawmakers to vote it to his desk.

Biden praised McCarthy and his negotiators for operating in good faith, and all congressional leaders for ensuring swift passage of the legislation. ‘They acted responsibly, and put the good of the country ahead of politics,’ he said.

Overall, the 99-page bill restricts spending for the next two years and changes some policies, including imposing new work requirements for older Americans receiving food aid and greenlighting an Appalachian natural gas pipeline that many Democrats oppose. 

Some environmental rules were modified to help streamline approvals for infrastructure and energy projects – a move long sought by moderates in Congress.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates it could actually expand total eligibility for federal food assistance, with the elimination of work requirements for veterans, homeless people and young people leaving foster care.

The legislation also bolsters funds for defense and veterans, cuts back some new money for the Internal Revenue Service and rejects Biden’s call to roll back Trump-era tax breaks on corporations and the wealthy to help cover the nation´s deficits. 

But the White House said the IRS’ plans to step up enforcement of tax laws for high-income earners and corporations would continue.

The agreement imposes an automatic overall 1% cut to spending programs if Congress fails to approve its annual spending bills – a measure designed to pressure lawmakers of both parties to reach consensus before the end of the fiscal year in September.

In both chambers, more Democrats backed the legislation than Republicans, but both parties were critical to its passage. 

In the Senate the tally was 63-36 including 46 Democrats and independents and 17 Republicans in favor, 31 Republicans along with four Democrats and one independent who caucuses with the Democrats opposed.

The vote in the House was 314-117.

‘You guys realize you’re not in the real world’: Biden mocks reporters for debt ceiling questions and laughs when asked about DeSantis pardoning Trump as he heads to Delaware for one night

• Biden said there was ‘no reason’ why the bipartisan deal wouldn’t pass by June 5 
• He said reporters who asked about it weren’t in the ‘real world’
• He smiled and laughed when asked about DeSantis’ pardon claim 

By Geoff Earle, Deputy U.S. Political Editor For Dailymail.com

Published: 16:24 EDT, 29 May 2023 | Updated: 18:49 EDT, 29 May 2023

A scheduled White House meeting between President Joe Biden, Speaker Kevin McCarthy and the other congressional leaders was suddenly postponed as the U.S. rushes toward defaulting on its debt.

The meeting will now take place next week as staff between the two sides continue to meet to try and hash out a deal that will allow the country to meet its obligations to its $31 trillion debt.

A source familiar with the matter said the talks between the two sides ‘are progressing,’ and that the delay would allow staff to continue to exchange information. But the delay follows a White House meeting this week where the two sides did not announce any new agreements, other than to continue talking.

The United States is likely to hit its debt ceiling in the beginning of June, according to Treasury Department estimates of when ‘extraordinary measures’ will be exhausted.

Both chambers of Congress are scheduled to be out of session on Friday. 

McCarthy noted the clock is ticking.

‘There’s only 15 days to go. How is the president handled this? Exact same way he’s handled the border. He ignores it and hopes it goes away,’ the speaker said Thursday on Capitol Hill. 

‘They have no plan, no proposed savings and no clue. Apparently President Biden doesn’t want to deal. He wants to default. Mr. President, my message is very simple. Do not miss another deadline like you just missed on title 42. Our country cannot afford it,’ he added.

And Biden faces a deadline of his own – he is scheduled to leave next week for the G7 meeting in Japan. 

The president took more shots at McCarthy and House Republicans at the White House during an event where he was hailing his administration’s environmental achievements – including unilateral moves like declaring national monuments to protect federal lands and an EPA decision to block an Alaska mine in Bristol Bay. 

This time, he said the House-passed budget, which includes a one-year extension of the debt limit, would lead to a 22 percent cut across programs that would harm the environment.

He said it would slash funding for wetlands, firefighters, and park rangers.

‘Folks, we can’t let that happen,’ he said.

On Tuesday, Biden hosted the four Congressional leaders – McCarthy, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell – at the White House for a meeting, in which the little progress was made.

For months, the president has said he wanted Congress to pass a ‘clean’ debt ceiling bill. 

Instead, House Republicans passed a bill at the end of last month that lifts the debt limit by $1.5 trillion in exchange for $4.5 trillion in spending cuts over time.

That bill is dead upon arrival in the Senate in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

White House officials acknowledged to Reuters that they must accept some spending cuts or strict caps on future spending if they are to strike a deal but insisted they must preserve Biden’s signature climate legislation that passed along party lines last year. 

But Republicans didn’t sound optimistic after their meeting with Biden on Tuesday.

‘Everybody in this meeting reiterated the positions they were at. I didn’t see any new movement,’ McCarthy said. 

Asked if the leaders were any closer to a deal, McCarthy said, ‘Well, we met. So that’s closer.’ 

The speaker said he pressed Biden ‘numerous times’ on whether he would agree to any budget cuts or if there were any areas for agreement, but Biden didn’t have any specific proposals. 

‘I passed a bill – what more should I have to do?’  he’s said.

But Schumer knocked McCarthy for not ruling out default regardless of the circumstances.

‘We explicitly asked Speaker McCarthy, would he take default off the table. He refused,’ the Democratic leader told the press. 

Biden, meanwhile, said ‘default is not an option,’ and said that he was considering using the 14th Amendment to lift the debt ceiling.

Biden additionally agreed to look at COVID funding as an area in the budget where he’d accept cuts – one of the proposals McCarthy floated after his White House meeting Tuesday afternoon. 

‘I trust Kevin will try to do what he says,’ Biden said when asked if he trusted McCarthy. ‘I don’t know how much leeway Kevin McCarthy thinks he has, when in fact – and I’m not being a wise guy when I say this – it took 15 votes for him to acquire the speakership.’

‘And apparently he had to make some serious concessions to get it from the most extreme elements of his party,’ Biden continued. ‘I just don’t know.’ 

The 14th Amendment says ‘the validity of the public debt, authorized by law…shall not be questioned.’ 

Some legal scholars argue this gives the Treasury Department the ability to keep borrowing money past the current $31.4 trillion debt limit that requires congressional approval to raise or lift.

The controversial idea builds on Section 4 of the 14th Amendment, arguing it would be unconstitutional for the U.S to fail to make payments even if the debt limit isn’t raised, which would effectively challenge the debt limit on legal grounds. 

Biden’s Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says using the 14th Amendment to end debt ceiling standoff would be ‘legally questionable’ as talks with Republicans drag on

• Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Thursday that using the 14th Amendment to end the debt ceiling standoff would be ‘legally questionable’ 
• Some legal scholars believe the amendment could be interpreted so the Treasury Department could keep borrowing money with Congress
• President Joe Biden said Tuesday he’d considered the option but also believed ‘it would have to be litigated’ 

By Nikki Schwab, Senior U.S. Political Reporter For Dailymail.com

Published: 10:14 EDT, 11 May 2023 | Updated: 13:07 EDT, 11 May 2023

Speaker Kevin McCarthy and the other three congressional leaders met with President Joe Biden to discuss the debt limit Tuesday afternoon, but the House GOP leader said there wasn’t ‘any new movement’ that came out of the discussion despite there being less than three weeks before the U.S. defaults on $3.1 trillion in debt.

McCarthy and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell spoke at a press gaggle after the meeting with Biden, followed by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

‘Everybody in this meeting reiterated the positions they were at. I didn’t see any new movement,’ McCarthy said. 

Asked if the leaders were any closer to a deal, McCarthy said, ‘Well, we met. So that’s closer.’  

Jeffries had a slightly more optimistic take, saying that Biden encouraged the leaders to discuss – starting either Tuesday night of Wednesday – a path forward around the budget and appropriations process. ‘That’s progress,’ the top House Democrat stated. 

The White House had previously demanded a ‘clean’ debt ceiling bill, divorced from any talk about budget cuts.  

The Congressional leaders also said that Biden would meet with them again on Friday. 

McCarthy revealed staff from both his office and the White House would gather together before then to again try to find a path forward. 

The speaker said he pressed Biden ‘numerous times’ on whether he would agree to any budget cuts or if there were any areas for agreement, but Biden didn’t have any specific proposals. 

Meanwhile, Schumer knocked McCarthy for not ruling out default regardless of the circumstances.

‘We explicitly asked Speaker McCarthy, would he take default off the table. He refused,’ the Democratic leader told the press. 

McCarthy insisted the House had done its duty to avoid default by passing a bill.  

The speaker’s bill that passed the House at the end of last month lifts the debt limit by $1.5 trillion in exchange for $4.5 trillion in spending cuts over time.

‘I was very clear with the president, we have now just two weeks to go. If Chuck Schumer could pass something – we’d go to conference right away – but I don’t think Chuck Schumer could pass anything, they haven’t dealt with it.’ 

The Senate hasn’t picked it up, as it will not pass.  

‘I don’t want to play politics with this, I think it’s too important,’ McCarthy added. 

He confirmed that the use of the 14th Amendment was not brought up during discussions. 

McConnell said ‘The United States is not going to default, it never has and it never will. However, elections have consequences and we now have divided government.’

‘So there must be an agreement. And the sooner the president and the speaker can reach an agreement, the sooner we can solve the problem.’  

Schumer said the leaders still have ‘legitimate differences,’ but is hopeful that there are ‘some places we can agree.’ 

Ahead of the meeting, Biden quipped that the group would ‘solve all the world’s problems.’ 

‘I’m sure that my colleagues and I will be saying things to you after this is all over … We’re not going to be taking any questions now. We’re going to get started, we’re going to solve all the world’s problems,’ the president said.

In photographs McCarthy and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell can be seen in the Oval Office seated on couches opposite their Democratic counterparts – Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries while Biden sits in a chair at the head of the discussion.

Asked about the tone of the meeting, Biden said that three of the four participants were ‘very measured, low-key.’ Occasionally there would be a little bit of an assertion from the speaker that was maybe a little over-the-top.’ 

McCarthy denied getting angry. ‘If you spent any time with Schumer, you’d know who the fourth was,’ he quipped.  

Before leaving the Capitol McCarthy he would oppose extending the debt limit to the end of the fiscal year on September 30 to give him and the president more time to hash out budget negotiations. 

‘Just get this done now,’ the speaker told reporters ahead of his highly anticipated meeting. ‘He’s got to stop ignoring problems. And why continue to kick the can down the road? Let’s solve it now.’ 

The speaker said a debt deal would need to be worked out by next week in order to be voted on by early June. 

The meeting began after 4 p.m. – when markets close – and marks the first time Biden and McCarthy have gone toe-to-toe on the debt ceiling in over three months.  

‘I hope it’s different than it’s been for the last 97 days,’ McCarthy said. ‘On February 1st I went to see the president and sat down with him saying we should work on the debt ceiling so we wouldn’t get to this point. Unfortunately it’s taken him 97 days to finally come back.’

The speaker said he did not have high hopes for the meeting. ‘I had a much higher expectation 97 days ago…then he told me one thing and did another.’

Both sides are entrenched as ever in their opposing demands over the nation’s borrowing limit – even as the Treasury Department says there could be just three weeks before the nation runs out of funds to pay its bills. 

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Tuesday during the daily press briefing that the president’s plan is not to support a short-term extension of the debt ceiling – putting more emphasis on the importance of the afternoon meeting of the ‘Big Four.’

‘A short-term extension is not our plan, either. That is not our plan,’ she said, adding that it is Congress who must act to prevent a default.

‘This is a manmade crisis that the speaker is leading. Can get this done.’ ‘We want to make sure that we move the threat of default,’ she added. ‘This is not negotiable.’

The deadline to hash out a budget for fiscal year 2024 is not until September 30, but McCarthy insists he will use raising the debt limit as leverage to guarantee spending cuts are included in that budget. 

When the federal government can’t borrow any more money and the nation’s bills pile up hire than its tax receipts, the U .S. could plunge into a catastrophic default – potentially triggering a recession and soaring unemployment. The Treasury Department has said this could occur as soon as June 1.

White House might swallow a ‘short-term’ debt ceiling extension – as Biden rips MAGA Republicans for creating a ‘manufactured crisis’

• The White House is considering a short-term extension to lift the debt ceiling, CNBC reported Friday 
• Sources characterized the move as a ‘last resort’ or a ‘fallback’ to prevent the country from going into a devastating default 
• The president ripped ‘MAGA’ Republicans at a meeting Friday, calling them out for creating a ‘manufactured crisis’  

By Nikki Schwab, Senior U.S. Political Reporter For Dailymail.com

Published: 16:05 EDT, 5 May 2023 | Updated: 17:38 EDT, 5 May 2023