House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) emerged from a Tuesday meeting with President Biden and other congressional leaders at the White House railing against Biden’s continued insistence on a clean debt ceiling increase.
Yes, but: Despite saying there was no “new movement” in the meeting with congressional leaders, McCarthy said they plan to sit down again later this week.
- “I would hope that he would be willing to negotiate for the next two weeks so we can actually solve this problem and not take America [to] the brink."
- “The progress that was made was that we were actually able to meet.”
The other side: Democratic leaders said House Republicans are holding the country hostage by refusing to take a default off the table.
- Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he'd be happy to negotiate over spending, but only as part of the budget and appropriations process instead of tied to the debt ceiling.
What's next: Staffs from the four leaders will begin negotiations as soon as Tuesday evening, Democratic leaders said after the meeting.
Editor's note: This article has been corrected to note that Schumer is the majority leader, not the minority leader.
