Discontent Grows on the Fringes Over Potential Debt Deal

It may signal a deal could emerge soon. It could also mean things are about to get messy.

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Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy conducts a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on the debt-ceiling crisis with House and Senate Republicans on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Far-right Republicans and progressive Democrats are separately growing anxious about a potential debt ceiling deal between House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Joe Biden.

Frustration on the fringes is an almost inevitable phase of any genuinely bipartisan talks in Congress, and it could mean a deal is imminent—but the pushback presents new hurdles for party leaders as they face a default deadline as soon as June 1. To pass a deal, the Biden administration may have to prevent a revolt among Democrats over any concessions they make to Republicans. And if GOP leaders can’t placate their own members, dissent within the conference could threaten McCarthy’s leadership position and throw the House into chaos.

Staff and officials spent the week hammering out the details of a plan, aiming to complete a deal this weekend. McCarthy on Thursday made his most optimistic remarks yet about the odds of reaching an agreement, a sharp turn from his assessment earlier this week that the two sides were far apart.

“I see the path,” McCarthy told reporters of a potential deal, adding that the talks were professional and everyone involved was working hard.

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  1. Randall Briggs

    I love how fiscally responsible Republicans can pretend to be when there's a Democrat in the White House.

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  2. Randall Briggs

    "Russ Vought, former director of the Trump administration’s Office of Management and Budget, wrote Thursday that a less ambitious deal that doesn’t retain the House GOP’s planned $150 billion cut in discretionary spending for the upcoming fiscal year is unacceptable."

    Why does Trump's former budget director get a veto over this negotiation? Are Republicans thinking that Trump is still president? Oh, wait, I know the answer.

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    Pat @ Tavi Hall

    I still have hope that the less extreme parts of both parties might work together. Call me a dreamer.

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      Stephanie

      I think they can, but I’m afraid Kevin McCarthy doesn’t want them to. He is dealing with hostage takers in his own party. Either they get their way or he is looking at possibly being unseated.

      It’s the weak place in the wall that if eliminated would break up the logjam.

      If he wasn’t so determined to placate the hostage takers thinking that’ll enable him to remain Speaker, a bipartisan deal would be possible with Democratic house members whose votes could make up for the hardliners’ who refuse to compromise.

      So maybe the only way out is for him to go ahead and deal with Democrat House members and the chips fall where they may.

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    Wbuese(BZ)

    All very incisive. However, I would like to register a general complaint. It seems to be the habit amongst several of the Dispatch reporters to omit a lawmaker's party affiliation (and sometimes their state) when referencing a quote or position from them. Unlike folks whose lives revolve around knowing off hand these facts about everybody in the House and Senate, most of us don't know the vast majority of them. A simple and traditional (R-Kansas) or (D-Illinois) would provide much clarity to the message of an article. Please think hard about making this feature standard across your platform.

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      Stephanie

      Is that so you don’t find yourself agreeing with a member of the other party?

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        Wbuese(BZ)

        Stephanie,
        Nope. Not at all. However, it's a just nice to know who it is you're reading about. It's encouraging to see a lawmaker from one of the parties agreeing with the opposition, and informative if it's someone disagreeing with a member of their own party. It's all about perspective.

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    2. Randall Briggs

      Good suggestion!

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    Rlritt

    Biden should hold a televised speech telling the people that Republicans want the country to go into default unless he agrees to cut spending on Medicaid and other programs. Then what will happen is SS stops and so does Medicare. The pension programs and the stock market will crash.

    But he refuses to let them ruin the economy so he is envoking the 14th amendment that states he can guarantee the United States can pay its debts. Don't even give them the chance to respond. Let the American people see what they're willing to do just to screw the country up.

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      Cogitatio

      Sure, let us continue to demagogue the spending problem we have. I mean, it is not as though we need to control Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security spending. Oh, wait, we DO have to control it.

      So absolutely, encourage the lunatics on the Left to play more games with the lunatics on the Right, all while telling an actual lie about the "default" (the nation does not go into default, it continues to bring in money and that money will be spent, so the debt is paid, and all non-discretionary programs are paid, up until the incoming funds are exhausted. The only way the nation goes into default is if the Biden administration deliberately takes it there).

      But let us continue to ignore the spending problem we have. Makes perfect sense to me....

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        Rlritt

        How does Biden take us there? All he is asking is to raise ceiling. He is not asking for more money, just asking for an agreement to cover the debt to a certain amount. It's not an negotiation over spending. We already spent the money. We are guaranteeing that we will pay it. I've flattened all my stock options because the market will crash if they pass they pass the deadline. I'd like to get back to business. This uncertainty is bad.

        One of the things they want to do is eliminate the student federal debt forgiveness. This pays out no money since the money is already out. It just means that it won't be paid back. I actually disagree with loan forgiveness, but Biden should agree to it unwillingly and make it clear the Republicans are the ones doing it. All those new voters will never ever vote for a Republican for the next 60 years..

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          Cogitatio

          Hmm, I was actually addressing your original comments.

          Raising the debt ceiling is, by definition, asking for more money--i.e., more debt. Yes, congress approved the spending, but that does not change the fact that we do not actually have all of that money. It is like agreeing to pay for a car, and then trying to get the loan approved. We do not actually have the funds to pay for everything. We CANNOT have "spent the money" any more than you can have bought a car without the loan being approved. If your loan was approved for a lesser amount, you would have buy a cheaper car, as one example.

          As to Student Loan Forgiveness, that is another example of executive power run amuck. The President has no authority to spend that money. He is literally violating the Constitution and should be impeached for it. Not because I am a crazy right-winger (I am not even a conservative), but because if you do not impeach and remove people in office for violating the Constitution--both Republicans and Democrats--then they will just continue to do so.
          But then, a lot of Presidents in recent times should have been removed from office. Of course, for that to happen, Congress would actually have to do its job...
          senatus est facere officium!

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  6. Trichwages

    Very informative. Thanks, Haley.

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    Ben Connelly

    “ Conservative activists are raising alarms, adding outside pressure to the talks. Russ Vought, former director of the Trump administration’s Office of Management and Budget, wrote Thursday that a less ambitious deal that doesn’t retain the House GOP’s planned $150 billion cut in discretionary spending for the upcoming fiscal year is unacceptable.”

    Of course they do. Everyone knows how this works. Each side has to think the other side won’t jump off the tracks first.

    “ but negotiators appear to be coalescing behind some kind of caps on government spending, clawing back billions of dollars in unspent coronavirus aid, and potentially some language streamlining permitting processes for energy projects.”

    A deal is going to happen. And none of the people saying this crazy Congress would default will apologize when it does.

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  8. Frank Lee

    Democrats barely hold the majority in the Senate. Biden is very much disapproved. The House is barely in GOP hands.

    Yet there are Democrats and Republicans that think they hold the cards to get their extreme policies though.

    What they electorate have been telling DC is that compromise is not only expected, it is desired.

    Only when both extremes are pissed off about the bill do we know it hit the sweet spot.

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      Rlritt

      Raising debt ceiling is not supposed to be a negotiation.

      Everyone know I know likes Biden a lot.

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  9. Andrew M

    Can someone please remind me why the Democrats thought it would be politically beneficial not to pass a debt ceiling increase last December??

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      Stephanie

      What a big mistake that was.

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    2. Frank Lee

      Because the media gives them so much cover they don't need to operate on real principles... only what is politically advantageous at the time.

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        Rlritt

        Are you kidding me! I have never read on word on the good things Biden has done (there are quite a few) and a constant complaint about things not important. (just personal attacks.)

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  10. R. James

    Sounds like the Senate has less than 12 days to pass an alternative to the House bill. How many days are needed for a bill to pass both chambers and land on the President's desk anyway?

    The 14th Amendment option is a pipe dream. If Biden goes through with it, then there is a good chance the House will impeach him for it.

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      Stephanie

      That House (Republicans) would impeach their grandma.

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