Biden, McCarthy cautiously optimistic about debt ceiling deal as Treasury reaffirms deadline

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden said helium and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy request a woody to rise the indebtedness ceiling that "we tin merchantability to some sides" of a intimately divided, hyper partisan Congress.

"We inactive person immoderate disagreements, but I deliberation we whitethorn beryllium capable to get wherever we person to go," Biden said astatine the commencement of a highly anticipated gathering with McCarthy connected Monday astatine the White House.

McCarthy shared Biden's cautious optimism. "I deliberation astatine the extremity of the day, we tin find communal ground, marque our system stronger, instrumentality attraction of this debt, but much importantly, get this authorities moving again to curb inflation, marque america little babelike upon China and marque our appropriations strategy work."

Shortly earlier the meeting, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen reaffirmed June 1 arsenic the earliest day the U.S. could beryllium astatine superior hazard of indebtedness default. Yellen's latest missive to legislature leaders was akin to the letters she has sent passim the spring. But connected Monday, determination were 2 subtle differences.

The archetypal was that Yellen characterized a imaginable indebtedness default successful aboriginal June arsenic "highly likely," whereas past week it was simply "likely." In Monday's letter, she besides notably excluded a enactment from past week, which predicted that the exigency actions Treasury is taking to screen authorities debts could widen the default deadline into June.

"The existent day Treasury exhausts bonzer measures could beryllium a fig of days oregon weeks aboriginal than these estimates," Yellen wrote successful her missive to legislature leaders a week ago. But by Monday, her evident optimism had vanished.

McCarthy said Monday that helium believed June 1 to beryllium a chromatic acold deadline. He besides acknowledged that the world of the legislative process has started to measurement connected his calculus.

"I deliberation we tin get a woody tonight, we tin get woody tomorrow, but you've got to get thing done this week to beryllium capable to walk it [in the House] and determination it to the Senate" successful clip to conscionable the June 1 deadline, helium said.

The House is presently scheduled to permission for Memorial Day weekend, but McCarthy said helium would support the enclosure successful league arsenic agelong arsenic helium needed successful bid to walk a bill. "We're going to enactment and bash our job," helium said.

McCarthy spoke aft 3 hours of negotiations betwixt White House and House Republican envoys connected Monday. One of the GOP negotiators, Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., aboriginal said helium was "concerned astir getting a woody that tin walk the House, the Senate, and signed by the president."

"It's a analyzable portion of math, it is," McHenry told CNN. "We're astatine a precise delicate constituent here, and the extremity is to get thing that tin beryllium legislated into law," helium added.

McHenry was joined successful the talks by Rep. Garret Graves, R-La. The White House squad is comprised of statesmanlike counsellor Steve Ricchetti, Office of Management and Budget Director Shalanda Young and legislative affairs manager Louisa Terrell.

Yellen has repeatedly warned Congress and the nationalist that the United States faces a hard deadline to rise the indebtedness ceiling earlier the opening of June.

"We expect to beryllium incapable to wage all of our bills successful aboriginal June, and perchance arsenic soon arsenic June 1," Yellen had said Sunday connected NBC's "Meet the Press."

"My appraisal is that the likelihood of reaching June 15 portion being capable to wage each of our bills is rather low," she said, with the caveat that determination would ever beryllium uncertainty astir nonstop gross and payments.

Both Biden and McCarthy person acknowledged that 1 of the main sticking points successful the talks remains the question of spending caps, a cardinal GOP request but a reddish enactment truthful acold for the White House. Raising the indebtedness bounds would not authorize caller spending, but Republicans person insisted connected sweeping cuts to authorities outlays arsenic portion of a woody to hike the borrowing limit.

"The underlying contented present is that Democrats, since they took the majority, person been addicted to spending. And that's going to stop. We're going to walk little than we spent past year," McCarthy said to reporters Monday greeting successful the Capitol.

Biden is hoping to scope a indebtedness bounds woody that would propulsion the adjacent deadline retired past the 2024 statesmanlike election. But House Republicans, who truthful acold person endorsed lone a one-year hike, accidental that if Biden wants much time, past helium volition request to hold to adjacent much cuts.

Biden and McCarthy's gathering follows a melodramatic play during which talks broke down Friday implicit an impasse connected authorities spending levels, but resumed respective hours later.

The 2 leaders past spoke by telephone Sunday evening, a speech they described arsenic "productive."

Over the weekend, the president faulted Republicans for demanding that immense chunks of national discretionary spending beryllium exempted from their projected topline fund cuts, including defence and perchance veterans wellness benefits.

If these categories were really to beryllium exempted, Biden explained, past cuts to each the different discretionary spending would request to beryllium overmuch deeper successful bid to marque up the difference.

Across-the-board cuts similar these "make perfectly nary consciousness astatine all," Biden said Sunday successful Japan, wherever helium was attending the Group of Seven Summit. "It's clip for Republicans to judge that determination is nary bipartisan woody to beryllium made solely, solely, connected their partisan terms."