U.S. President Joe Biden will meet with U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy as part of meetings with new congressional leaders at the beginning of the year.
Among the topics to be discussed is not the proposal to raise the debt ceiling, an option ruled out by the Democratic leader. «As the president has said many times, raising the debt ceiling is not a negotiation; it is an obligation of this country and its leaders to avoid economic chaos,» said White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre.
Instead, the meeting will discuss the new tax plan proposed by the Speaker of the House and his Republican allies, which calls for cuts to Social Security, Medicare and other vital systems.
Likewise, Biden will inform McCarthy of the government’s plan to cut the federal budget deficit, after the last recorded figure of $727 billion, as well as the government’s projects to strengthen retirement programs.
«We are going to have a clear debate about two different visions for the country — one that cuts Social Security and one that protects it — and the president is happy to discuss it with the speaker of the House,» the Biden Administration said in a statement.
For his part, McCarthy has responded to the president’s invitation to sit down and discuss «a responsible debt ceiling increase to address irresponsible government spending,» he said on Twitter.
«I look forward to our meeting,» the Republican spokesman added.
In this regard, the U.S. Treasury Department has communicated the launch of «extraordinary measures» after the country has reached this Thursday the debt limit of 31,381 million dollars (29,000 million euros) legally allowed.
In a letter sent to the Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, as well as to the Democratic leader, Hakeem Jeffries, the Secretary of the Treasury, Janet Yellen, has informed that the period of time that the extraordinary measures may last «is subject to considerable uncertainty».
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
