- The Biden administration responded to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's speech on Wall Street Monday, in which McCarthy addressed the nation's debt ceiling.
- A White House deputy press secretary accused McCarthy of using the nation's debt as a bargaining chip, going against advice from former President Donald Trump.
- Mccarthy proposed legislation that would lift the nation's debt ceiling but cap future spending at 1 percent.
The Biden administration quoted former President Donald Trump when responding to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's speech Monday on Wall Street in New York City.
McCarthy delivered the speech to the New York Stock Exchange where he addressed the ongoing issues with the nation's debt ceiling. Democrats and Republicans have tussled for months with conspiring a plan to address the debt ceiling, now at $31 trillion. The speech comes as the federal government expects to reach its spending limit on the debt ceiling this summer and Americans continue to face inflation as the Federal Reserve implements higher rates.
Democrats have repeatedly called for raising the debt ceiling to continue funding federal programs, but House Republicans—namely McCarthy—have been set against continuing to spend without restrictions.
McCarthy spoke out against raising taxes to counteract the nation's increasing debt, but he also asserted that defaulting on the debt wasn't an option for the federal government. He labeled the nation's debt as a "ticking time bomb" that, if left uncapped, would lead to the nation's first default on the debt.
After McCarthy's speech, which slammed President Joe Biden for doing "nothing" to address the financial crisis at hand, White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates accused McCarthy of using the nation's debt as a bargaining chip, a diversion from Trump's philosophy of never using the nation's debt in such a way.
"Speaker McCarthy is breaking with the bipartisan norm he followed under Trump by engaging in dangerous economic hostage-taking that threatens hard-working Americans' jobs and retirement savings," Bates said in a statement to reporters. "In 2019, Donald Trump himself said, 'I can't imagine anybody ever even thinking of using the debt ceiling as a negotiating wedge.' This morning, Speaker McCarthy did just that."
In his speech, McCarthy proposed legislation that would lift the nation's debt ceiling but cap future spending at 1 percent. McCarthy previously criticized Democrats for hoping to raise the nation's debt ceiling, alleging that the action would increase America's dependency on China and raise taxes.
Bates maintained Monday that McCarthy failed to present a solid plan to address the debt ceiling issue.
"Meanwhile he again failed to clearly outline what House Republicans are proposing and will vote on, even as he referenced a vague, extreme MAGA wish list that will increase costs for hard-working families, take food assistance and health care away from millions of Americans and yet would enlarge the deficit when combined with House Republican proposals for tax giveaways skewed to the super-rich, special interests, and profitable companies," Bates said. "A speech isn't a plan, but it did showcase House Republicans' priorities."
Newsweek reached out to the White House via email for comment.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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