Biden and McCarthy: Reached Debt Ceiling Deal Now Need Need Votes to Pass

McCarthy and coalition looking for Heaven's help

(Memo for GOP: The votes are not in Heaven)

Last Update (June 1, 2023) from all major outlets and a big whew…

Washington (CBS News) — The House and Senate both passed bills to suspend the debt ceiling and limit government spending in strong bipartisan votes that allayed fears of an unprecedented U.S. government default. 

The base bill, known as the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA) of 2023, came together within days of President Biden and House Speaker McCarthy reaching an agreement.

In the House, it passed by a vote of 314 to 117; 149 Republicans and 165 Democrats voted yes. Seventy-one Republicans and 46 Democrats voted no, and four members did not vote.

In the Senate, it passed by a vote of 63-37 with 17 Republicans joining 45 Democrats and two Democratic-leaning independents in supporting the measure. Thirty-one Republicans, four Democrats, and one independent — Sen. Bernie Sanders (VT) — voted against the bill; one Senator did not vote.

MAJOR UPDATE ON DEBT CEILING DEAL:

Party leaders in the House and Senate, both sides, are trying hold the Biden-McCarty debt limit agreement together and get it passed in the next few days as reported on here from NBC News with this headline and few key points below:

“House GOP hardliners trash debt limit bill as party leaders try to shore up votes”

Highlights from the article:

WASHINGTON — The race is on for leaders on both sides to secure the votes to pass a bipartisan compromise struck by President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to avert a catastrophic debt default with just a week to go before the June 5 deadline. 

Facing skepticism or criticism within their ranks, both party's leaders mobilized to shore up support for the bill.

GOP side of the coin: House Republicans leaders held a conference call with reporters on Monday to promote the agreement.

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY the GOP conference chair said: “This is a historic Republican victory. It will cut spending year-over-year.”

Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) called the deal insanity with virtually no cuts.”

Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, issued a torrent of tweets blasting the deal as a “t*rd-sandwich.” (Roy and Norman both sit on the GOP House Rules panel).

Sen. Rand Paul tweeted: “The deal has fake spending cuts and. conservatives have been sold out once again!” 

Those right-wingers may be in the GOP minority. Some are confident the bill will succeed with some saying so.

Rep. Dusty Johnson, (R-SD), Chair of the center-right Main Street Caucus, told reporters: “Oh, this thing will absolutely pass. “There’s no question about that. I’ve talked to dozens of members — and listen, not every single member is on board. But when was the last time that every single member of Congress agreed on anything?”

DEM Side of the coin:

Dem Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) said: “The rules on work are bad policy that don't help reduce unemployment. We have seen reams of data that show that when you put these work requirements in, they’re really just administrative red tape that prevent the people who need help from getting help.”

House Democratic leaders sent a memo encouraging lawmakers to sell the legislation as: “A defeat for extreme MAGA Republicans as it rejects their extreme demands to cut critical lifelines for everyday Americans.”

House Democrats face some internal conflict about how to proceed, according to sources in the caucus. Apart from the policy concerns, some are upset they were largely excluded from the negotiations and don't feel a primary responsibility to carry the bill over the line. But they're also heavily invested in political success for Biden and in protecting the U.S. economy, which some believe will be enough to gain passage.

Rep. Annie Kuster (D-NH), Chair of the center-left New Democrat Coalition, praised the deal saying: “We expect that we will be involved with the White House in our Democratic leadership team in urging support for the vote. I’m pleased that the debt ceiling will be raised and that we will not have this fight again until at least 2025.”

Kuster further said: “The bill also will protect Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) clean energy provisions, the CHIPS and Science Act, and the Mountain Valley Pipeline as significant concern some New Democrat Coalition members expressed. There will be some tough pills to swallow. But overall, the White House negotiators did an outstanding job.”

Kuster then concluded saying: “I do not see it as a transformative change in government funding or the impact on the vast majority of the American people. For some people's lives, it will be very significant. But for most Americans, they will not notice.”

My 2 Cents: My original post of concern on this topic follows this update and is posted below it.

Now, let’s hope it passes and they can make it work without all the side dish noise. The public surely needs that assurance and a reprieve from all the left-right (mostly right) fighting.

Thanks for stopping by.