House Democrats admit debt limit talks are an ‘exercise of concession’
House Democrats are growing increasingly frustrated with how President Joe Biden and the White House are handling debt ceiling negotiations with Chairman Kevin McCarthy (R-CA).
Many Democrats, especially those who may face a tough election in 2024, have complained that the White House “missed” the message war against Republicans. They think Democrats could be pressured into accepting most demands from House Republicans.
“I have never seen such a massive, surprising and consequential potential failure. We’ll see where it comes out, but by definition we only measure success by what we’ve lost,” one Democrat said.
Other Democrats point out that Biden is traveling to Japan for the G-7 world leaders meeting and that the president has not spoken publicly about the debt ceiling recently.
THE Washington Post noted the contrast between Biden, who avoided the debt ceiling conversation, and McCarthy, who along with his lead negotiators — Reps. Garret Graves (R-LA) and Patrick McHenry (R-NC) — spoke to the journalists several times a day for weeks.
Rep. Dan Kildee (D-MI) said, “It’s frustrating.” He added that the speaker “feels free to negotiate in public, and that’s not really a productive way to try to come to a conclusion.”
Republicans dug in, refusing to accede to Democrats’ debt ceiling demands. In their case, they think the only concession they would accept is, according to McHenry, “the debt ceiling”.
“That’s what they get,” Graves said.
The American people appear to be aligned with the Republicans, as a CNN poll found that 60% of Americans say a debt ceiling increase should be accompanied by spending cuts.
A lawmaker said Democrats should play hardball with Republicans.
“When someone is only asking for cuts, that’s when you bring in requests for revenue generation or corporate tax rates, undo Trump’s tax cuts,” said one. legislator. The congressman said the White House should include gun control and other Democratic priorities in the talks.
“This is not a negotiation exercise. This is an exercise in concession,” the member added.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said there could be significant repercussions if Democrats accede to Republican demands.
“I think the backlash will be significant if somehow we were to be bullied into a bad deal,” she explained. “I think it’s very bad for the…people of America. I also think it’s a terrible dynamic for the negotiations to come.
Watch — Fmr. Obama’s Treasury Secretary: Democrats ‘will have to accept’ spending cuts they may find ‘difficult’ to raise debt ceiling
Watch – Clyburn: I’d agree to a debt deal even if the GOP doesn’t meet in the middle
Sean Moran is a political reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @SeanMoran3.
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