By a vote of 222-212 on Tuesday, the US House of Representatives approved legislation that would begin a multi-step process to raise the nation's debt ceiling with a simple majority if the bill passes the US Senate. According to Politico, the Senate might vote on this as soon as Thursday. According to The Associated Press, this bill outlines a deal between the two major parties to include a provision that expedites the debt limit process in an unrelated Medicare bill, which, if passed, will "open the process for the Senate to raise the debt ceiling through subsequent legislation with a Democrats' only majority vote."
More information about the deal:
- Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell both pushed their respective party members to support the bill on Tuesday, and McConnell told The Hill that at least ten Republicans would back it.
- According to The Washington Post, the US government has nearly $29 trillion in outstanding debt that is subject to the ceiling, and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has stated that the US will default on its obligations if the ceiling is not lifted by the December 15 deadline.
- According to Axios, the arrangement was reached with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and avoids the filibuster.
Trump's opinion on this event.
Trump: The Old Crow’s two-month extension, and the break up of the Bill into two parts, gave the Democrats everything they needed. The Dems would have folded completely if Mitch properly played his hand, and if not, the Debt Ceiling scenario would be far less destructive.
Trump: Mitch McConnell just folded on the Debt Ceiling, a total victory for the Democrats—didn’t use it to kill the $5 Trillion Dollar (real number!) Build Back Worse Bill that will essentially change the fabric of our country forever.
Ted Cruz's opinion on this event.
Ted Cruz: from filibustering the thing. So the kind of carve-out we've been talking about all year for this or that kind of legislation - maybe voting rights - is actually happening. But it's a one-time deal and for this minor technical issue of the debt ceiling.
