As the country breathes a sigh of relief surrounding the tentative budget deal agreed between President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif), the attention and efforts now shift to the successful passage of the legislation that will suspend the debt ceiling for two years and avert a potential economic catastrophe.
Early indications suggest that it might not be a cakewalk, as opposition from both sides of the aisle threatens to stall the deal.
What Happened: “Maybe it [budget deal] doesn’t do everything for everyone, but this is a step in the right direction that no one thought that we would be able to today,” McCarthy said in an interview with Fox News on Sunday. The House speaker was responding to opposition from members of the House Freedom Caucus, which is a congressional caucus consisting of GOP members of the House of Representatives.
The Twitter account of the House Freedom Caucus tweeted that news of the deal indicated that “we’re looking down the barrel of a debt ceiling increase more than double what we passed in the #LimitSaveGrowAct.”
“While the critical policies to restore fiscal sanity and jumpstart economic growth appear immensely watered down. Unacceptable,” the caucus added, using the hashtag #HoldTheLine. The Limit, Save, Grow Act was a bill passed by House GOP members in late April to address the debt ceiling and implement spending reforms.
Following announcement of the tentative deal, conservative GOP members, including Rep. Dan Bishop (R-NC), slammed McCarthy for caving in. “McCarthy called the deal a ‘big win,’ claiming Democrats didn't get ‘one thing’ that they wanted out of the negotiation … except increasing debt another $4 trillion … and to bear no responsibility for it in the 2024 election season,” he tweeted.
Citing a source close of the House Republican leadership, Axios reported that about 60 conservative members are opposed to the deal and that that many Democrats may have to be roped in to pass the bill through the House.
A senior conservative source described the deal as “bulls***t,” the report added.
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McCarthy Confident: While on “Fox News Sunday,” McCarthy said, “I’ll debate this bill with anybody.” “Is it everything I wanted? No, because we don’t control all of it. But it is the biggest recession in history. It is the biggest cut Congress has ever voted for in that process,” he added.
Allaying fears, McCarthy said in a press conference on Capitol Hill that over 95% of the House Republicans were “overwhelmingly excited” about the deal. “You’re going to have Republicans and Democrats be able to move this to the president.”
The speaker also suggested that he was not worried about the possibility of being unseated.
Republicans have a 222-213 majority in the House, while Democrats control the Senate by a 51-49 majority.
What’s Next: Outlining the next steps, Democratic leader Rep. Hakeem Jefferies (D-NY) said Biden and McCarthy would speak to complete the agreement no later than 2 p.m. The text of the bill will be released by House Republicans and made available to the House, Senate and the public.
High-level members of the Biden administration will brief the House Democratic Caucus at 5 p.m. He also hinted at multiple reviews and discussions with the Biden administration over the next several days in advance of any mid-week vote scheduled by House GOP members.
McCarthy said on Saturday that the bill will be put to vote in the House on Wednesday.
Read Next: Yellen Pushes Debt Ceiling Deadline To June 5 As Biden Sounds Hopeful On New Deal: ‘Very Close’
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