A Wednesday vote on a bill to suspend the debt ceiling could ultimately reveal just how strong a hold House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has on his conference, after a compromise on the legislation has prompted conservative backlash. The vote is set to be a major test of McCarthy’s leadership and his ability to sell the agreement to more conservative members of his party, several of whom have already registered concerns about the bill.
This past weekend, McCarthy and President Joe Biden announced a deal to suspend the debt ceiling until 2025, and cap nondefense spending for two years. The agreement also expands the age range of those required to work to receive food stamps, and would restart student loan payments at the end of this summer, which have been suspended since March 2020. This compromise has very swiftly gotten blowback from conservative Republicans, who wanted deeper cuts to social spending, and progressive Democrats, who raised concerns about changes to work requirements.
“We should kill this,” Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX), a vocal opponent of the agreement said in a Fox News appearance on Monday, noting that Republicans didn’t get enough in exchange for suspending the debt ceiling.
The scramble to pass the legislation in Congress comes as lawmakers stare down a rapidly approaching default deadline on Monday, June 5, when the country may be unable to pay all of its bills.
A simple majority of 218 votes will be needed to pass debt ceiling legislation in the House. Because House Republicans have such a narrow 222-person majority — Democrats control 213 seats — they’ll likely need Democrats’ help to get this bill across the finish line. Members from both parties are expected to defect, so Republicans are unlikely to be able to pass this on their own despite having House control.
Looming over the vote is also an unspoken threat against McCarthy’s leadership, which, according to House rules, can be challenged if just one member wants to do…
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