WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden agreed to meet House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Wednesday to discuss raising the debt ceiling and avoiding a U.S. default as Republicans seek a deal that includes government spending cuts.
The meeting will pit Biden’s refusal to negotiate over the U.S. debt limit against McCarthy’s call for reductions in federal spending as a condition of any deal.
“I want to find a reasonable and a responsible way that we can lift the debt ceiling, but take control of this runaway spending,” McCarthy said Sunday on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” where he announced the meeting. “Now I know his staff tries to say something different, but I think the president is going to be willing to make an agreement together.”
