by Moira Warburton, Diane Bartz and Idrees Ali
WASHINGTON, May 29 (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden said on Sunday he had finalized a budget deal with House of Representatives speaker Kevin McCarthy to temporarily suspend the U.S. debt ceiling, saying that a text was ready to be submitted to the vote of the Congress.
Speaking briefly to reporters at the White House, the Democratic leader spoke of a “very important step forward” as the specter of a June default looms.
After weeks of negotiations, Joe Biden and Kevin McCarthy, the top Republican representative in Congress, reached a preliminary agreement on Saturday evening.
It is now up to Congress, where each party tightly controls one chamber, to approve this agreement before June 5 – the date after which, according to the US Treasury Department, the federal government may no longer be able to make payments.
“I strongly urge both chambers to approve this deal,” Joe Biden said on Sunday, adding he expects Kevin McCarthy to muster the necessary votes in Congress.
Earlier in the day, the “speaker” of the House of Representatives predicted that he would have the support of a majority of elected Republicans.
While some ultra-conservative Republicans and progressive-wing Democrats have criticized the deal, its future is likely to hinge on elected moderates on each side.
Republicans lead the House of Representatives with 222 seats to 213, while Democrats control the Senate with 51 seats to 49.
(Reporting by Moira Warburton, Steve Holland, Diane Bartz, Daphne Psaledakis and Idrees Ali; French version by Jean Terzian)
2023-05-28 23:34:25
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