Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) seems to think he is in charge, but his fear looks to grow as he falsely claims that President Biden wants a default.
CNN’s Manu Raju tweeted McCarthy’s Monday morning comments:
McCarthy says they are still “far apart.” He said: “Seems like they want a default more than a deal.”
McCarthy added they need a deal by “this weekend” in order “to have a timeline to be able to pass it in both houses.”— Manu Raju (@mkraju) May 15, 2023
Why is Kevin McCarthy demanding a deal by the weekend?
The House is only going to be in session from May 22-25, and then they go back on recess until June 5th. Kevin McCarthy wants to prevent a national default before he goes on vacation.
McCarthy’s characterization is the opposite of President Biden’s statement on Sunday, “I remain optimistic because I’m a congenital optimist. But I really think there’s a desire on their part, as well as ours, to reach an agreement, and I think we’ll be able to do it.”
It sounds like Biden wants a deal and McCarthy doesn’t.
Speaker McCarthy’s entire hand to play revolves around being able to convince the American people that Joe Biden doesn’t want a deal, but so far, that hasn’t been effective.
Kevin McCarthy is failing, and with each passing day, the pressure is growing on him to either pass a clean debt limit increase or take the blame for a default.
Despite his huffing and puffing, McCarthy is on the hot seat, as his efforts to shift the burden to Biden aren’t working.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
