Rep. Scalise: House May Vote on Debt Ceiling Bill Today

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., on Wednesday said Republicans may vote on their plan to raise the $31.4 trillion federal debt ceiling as early as today.

“We would really like it, it would be a lot easier if President Biden was sitting at the table with the Speaker … but because they walked away from the table, we said we’re not going to sit back and run the clock like President Biden, we’re going to do it on our own. So, this bill represents a lot of really good ideas,” Scalise said during a press conference.

“The good news is that we can vote as early as today on this. We’re going to bring the rule shortly, at 1:30 p.m., which allows us to bring the bill up. And it addresses the changes that were made.

“So we’ll be ready to move as early as today. I wouldn’t tune out C-SPAN today if you’re watching. We want to get this done as soon as possible. But more importantly, we want President Biden to finally start getting engaged in this process.”

Republican leaders in the House of Representatives approved changes to the bill overnight aimed at assuaging Midwestern Republican concerns about biofuel tax credits and conceding to hardliners’ calls to toughen work requirements for some low-income Americans.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy told reporters on Wednesday morning that the House would vote later in the day. He did not say if he had the 218 votes needed to pass the legislation: “I don’t want to take all your anticipation away.”

McCarthy can afford to lose just four votes from his narrow 222-213 majority if he is to pass the bill, a move he has described as critical to force Biden to negotiate spending cuts as a condition of raising the debt ceiling. Failure to act could trigger a catastrophic default.

House Republicans are offering to increase Washington’s borrowing authority by $1.5 trillion or until March 31, 2024, whichever comes first. The bill would pare spending to 2022 levels and then cap budget growth at 1% a year, repeal some tax incentives for renewable energy and stiffen work requirements for some antipoverty programs. Even if it passes the House, it is not seen as being able to win approval in its current form in the Democrat-controlled Senate.

Scalise criticized the Biden administration for stalling on the debt ceiling.

“A lot of hard work has gone into how best to start this negotiation,” he said. “Speaker McCarthy over two months ago did get the opportunity to sit down with President Biden. It would be a lot easier if Democrats were actually part of this conversation.

“This federal government, under President Biden when Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer were running everything for the last two years, have gotten us to a point that for every $100 that comes in, the government is spending $129 dollars.

“You can’t keep doing that.”

Information from Reuters was used in this report.