House Speaker says Democrats should cap spending to avoid U.S. debt default - Reuters.com

WASHINGTON, Jan 15 (Reuters) - House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy said connected Sunday helium believes Democrats would hold to headdress authorities spending to debar a U.S. indebtedness default and helium wants to sermon the thought with President Joe Biden.

Republicans present successful power of the House person threatened to usage the indebtedness ceiling arsenic leverage to request spending cuts from Biden's Democrats, who power the U.S. Senate.

This has raised concerns successful Washington and connected Wall Street astir a bruising combat that could beryllium astatine slightest arsenic disruptive arsenic the protracted conflict of 2011, which prompted a little downgrade of the U.S. recognition standing and years of forced home and subject spending cuts.

"I privation to beryllium down with him present truthful determination is nary problem," McCarthy said successful an interrogation with Fox News, referring to Biden. "I'm definite helium knows there's places that we tin alteration that enactment America connected a trajectory that we prevention these entitlements alternatively of putting it into bankruptcy the mode they person been spending."

McCarthy pointed to the Trump-era statement by U.S. lawmakers' successful 2019 to suspend the statutory indebtedness bounds connected Treasury Department borrowing until a aboriginal day arsenic grounds that specified compromise is possible.

"I judge we tin beryllium down with anybody who wants to enactment together. I judge this president could beryllium that person," helium said.

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer said connected Sunday helium hoped indebtedness default could beryllium avoided but enactment the onus connected Democrats to hold to spending cuts.

"Republicans were elected with a mandate from the American radical successful the midterm elections. We campaigned connected the information that we were going to beryllium superior astir spending cuts," Comer said successful an interrogation with CNN's "State of the Union."

"So the Senate is going to person to admit the information that we're not going to budge until we spot meaningful betterment with respect to spending."

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said connected Friday the United States volition apt deed the $31.4 trillion statutory indebtedness bounds connected Jan. 19, forcing the Treasury to commencement bonzer currency absorption measures that tin apt forestall default until aboriginal June.

Congress created the indebtedness ceiling successful 1917 to springiness the authorities greater borrowing flexibility, and indispensable o.k. each summation to guarantee that the United States meets its indebtedness obligations and avoids a catastrophic default.

Reporting by Doina Chiacu and Katharine Jackson; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Grant McCool

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