Today in summary
Democrats and Republicans contended with the debt ceiling deal reached over the long weekend. Republican House speaker Kevin McCarthy insisted the deal would be “easy” for his party to support, while right-wing members blasted it.
House Democratic leader, Hakeem Jeffries, said his party is “committed to making sure we do our part in avoiding default”.
Points of contention included expanded work requirements for long-term recipients of food stamp benefits. Republicans said that the new work requirements would save money, and help get poor Americans back on their feet – despite studies indicating otherwise (work requirements don’t increase work or earnings). Still, the White House said provisions in the deal that access to Snap for veterans and unhoused Americans would offset work requirement expansions.
Here’s more information about the deal and next steps:
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Shalanda Young, Biden’s top negotiator on this debt deal, told reporters that the expanded access to food stamps for the unhoused and veterans could “offset” the number who might lose coverage due to new qualifications that the Republicans pushed for.
WH's @ShalandaYoung46, addressing stricter SNAP work requirements, says "there's a very real possibility" that expanded food stamps for the homeless and veterans will "offset" the number of recipients who will lose coverage.
— Joey Garrison (@joeygarrison) May 30, 2023
Food stamps have been a big point of division between Democrats and Republicans, and the new work requirements to receive Snap benefits is a point of contention for many on the left. Ultimately, if it would save the federal government any money – as Republicans claim it would.
Under the deal, so-called able-bodied adults who are 54 and younger and do not have children must work or participate in work training programs to get access to food stamps for an extended period. The current work requirements apply to those age 49 and under, and anti-poverty advocates said the changes could disproportionately impact poor, older Americans.
The White House, however, estimates that since many food stamp recipients are unhoused, veterans, or both – expanded access for those groups could ultimately mean that the number of people who are exempt from work requirements will be relatively unchanged.
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Colorado representative Joe Neguse got into a disagreement with Missouri representative Jason Smith about whether the Biden administration submitted the budget late, despite Republicans not submitting a budget at all.
“Only in the rules committee could the witness lay blame at the president for being a few weeks late in submitting his budget, when his party hasn’t submitted a budget, period,” said Neguse.
Neguse added that Republicans submitted a bill, but not a budget.
Before the disagreement, Neguse doubled down on previous comments that the current debt ceiling crisis is Republican’s fault.
“This is a manufactured crisis. No question about it. House Republicans are in control. You have the gavels. You’re in the majority. And the fact that we’re a mere few days from potential default because the majority decided to engage in this hostage taking … I think is a dangerous harbinger for how this body may function into the future.”
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Schumer has said that he will bring the debt ceiling agreement to the floor “as quickly as possible” to get votes before the default deadline of 5 June.
From CBS News’ Natalie Brand:
NEW from Senate Majority Leader Schumer: "When this bill arrives in the Senate, it is my plan to bring it to the floor as quickly as possible for consideration." He puts lawmakers on notice to vote before June 5 deadline.
— Natalie Brand (@NatalieABrand) May 30, 2023
More Democrats are saying the bipartisan debt agreement is a win as several assistance programs were not cut in the compromise.
“There are, however, things to celebrate in this bill because of what is not in it. The sort of damage that we saw from the Republican partisan bill that passed here just a month ago,” said Pennsylvania representative Brendan Francis Boyle, who noted that programs such as veterans healthcare were not affected by the latest agreement.
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Mitch McConnell signals support for debt ceiling deal
Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell signaled his support for the debt ceiling agreement, in comments made Tuesday.
“The speaker’s deal secures reductions in discretionary spending,” said McConnell.
“Speaker McCarthy & House Republicans deserve our thanks,” McConnell added.
From Punchbowl News’ Andrew Desiderio:
McConnell pitches Biden-McCarthy debt-limit bill to Republicans: “The speaker’s deal secures reductions in discretionary spending”
— Andrew Desiderio (@AndrewDesiderio) May 30, 2023
“Speaker McCarthy & House Republicans deserve our thanks,” McConnell adds.
“House Republicans’ unity forced President Biden to do his job,” McConnell says.
— Andrew Desiderio (@AndrewDesiderio) May 30, 2023
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Representative Jason Smith of Missouri criticized the Biden administration for taking too long to negotiate the debt ceiling bill.
“The American people didn’t have to wait those 100 days [Biden] chose to sit on the sidelines. But we have an agreement now and an opportunity to deliver some big wins for the American people,” said Smith, referring to the stalemate over the bill that took place across several months.
Meanwhile the Senate majority leader, Chuck Schumer, has said he supports the bipartisan debt ceiling agreement, despite opposition on both sides.
From Politico’s Burgess Everett:
Schumer: "I support the bipartisan agreement that President Biden has produced with Speaker McCarthy. Avoiding default is an absolute imperative"
— Burgess Everett (@burgessev) May 30, 2023
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McGovern also called out Republicans attacking benefits, such as food assistance, as a part of the debt ceiling agreement.
“These adjustments will make poorer, older Americans hungrier. Full stop.”
Republicans included work requirements for adults receiving food-assistance benefits, requiring adults under the age of 54 to work at least 20 hours a week to qualify.
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Ranking member Jim McGovern is currently speaking on the debt limit agreement, calling out Republicans for not negotiating on the agreement months ago.
“Frankly we should not be here. We should’ve taken care of this months ago,” said McGovern.
“This represents an all-time high in recklessness and stupidity.”
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House rules committee starts debating debt ceiling compromise
The House rules committee has started debating the debt ceiling bill, a compromise between Biden and McCarthy that has garnered growing opposition from Republican lawmakers.
The stream of the debate is available at the top of the liveblog.
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Utah representative Chris Stewart will resign from the House due to his wife’s health issues, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The Salt Lake Tribune first reported that Stewart will probably step down from office as early as this week, shrinking the Republican majority in the House.
The Tribune did not confirm what health issues Stewart’s wife is dealing with.
Stewart was first elected in 2012 and is serving his sixth term in the House. Many believed Stewart would leave his House seat to unseat Mitt Romney as US senator for Utah, the Tribune reported.
Stewart’s departure will kick off a special election in the House, organized by the Utah governor’s office.
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Here’s an exclusive from the Guardian’s Hugo Lowell, as Trump’s lawyer says that he was steered away from searching Trump’s office for secret records, where the FBI later found the most sensitive materials.
Donald Trump’s lawyer tasked with searching for classified documents at Mar-a-Lago after the justice department issued a subpoena told associates that he was waved off from searching the former president’s office, where the FBI later found the most sensitive materials anywhere on the property.
The lawyer, Evan Corcoran, recounted that several Trump aides had told him to search the storage room because that was where all the materials that had been brought from the White House at the end of Trump’s presidency ended up being deposited.
Corcoran found 38 classified documents in the storage room. He then asked whether he should search anywhere else, like Trump’s office, but was steered away, he told associates. Corcoran never searched the office and told prosecutors the 38 papers were the extent of the material at Mar-a-Lago.
The assertion that there were no classified documents elsewhere at the property proved to be wrong when the FBI seized 101 classified documents months afterwards, including from the office, which was found to be where the most highly classified documents had been located.
Read the full article here.
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Former first lady Rosalynn Carter has been diagnosed with dementia, the the Carter Center announced Tuesday.
The non-profit founded by the Carters released a statement on Carter’s condition.
The center said that the 95-year old continues to live at home with her husband, former president Jimmy Carter, and receive visits from loved ones.
The statement also noted Carter’s role as a mental health advocate and work to decrease mental health stigma, adding that releasing the statement was to help increase conversations around dementia.
“We recognize, as she did more than half a century ago, that stigma is often a barrier that keeps individuals and their families from seeking and getting much-needed support. We hope sharing our family’s news will increase important conversations at kitchen tables and in doctor’s offices around the country,” read the statement.
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A majority of Republican voters think Donald Trump would be their strongest nominee for president next year, according to a new poll.
According to the survey, from Monmouth University in New Jersey, 45% of Republicans (including Republican-leaning voters) think Trump is definitely the strongest candidate the party can hope to field against Joe Biden. Another 18% of such voters think Trump is probably the strongest possible GOP nominee.
This, remember, is a former president who has pleaded not guilty to 34 criminal counts over a hush money payment to the porn star Stormy Daniels; who was found liable for sexual assault and defamation against the writer E Jean Carroll, and fined $5m; who faces further problems in a related case after continuing to criticise Carroll; who faces a New York state civil suit over his business affairs; who faces indictment in state and federal investigations of his election subversion, including inciting the deadly January 6 attack on Congress; and also faces indictment over his retention of classified materials.
He’s also the former president who, according to the Washington Post, made 30,573 false or misleading statements in his four years in office. That too.
In the Monmouth poll, 13% of Republicans thought another candidate would definitely be the strongest nominee and 19% said another would probably be strongest.
More bad news, you’d think, for Ron DeSantis: the hard-right Florida governor who remains Trump’s closest challenger … if around 30 points behind in most polling averages and after a campaign rollout featuring its fair share of hiccups.
DeSantis, however, is feeling bullish. Here’s what he told Fox News he plans to do after winning the nomination and a general election against Biden. Clue – he doesn’t plan to start small:
And in more news from Texas – though unrelated – Elizabeth Holmes, the Theranos founder who was found guilty of defrauding investors, has begun her 11-year prison sentence.
It marks the end of the blood-testing firm’s fraud saga after the 39-year-old had tried and failed to delay her prison sentence.
Here’s a video of Holmes arriving at the prison in Bryan, Texas:
BREAKING: Elizabeth Holmes has turned herself into the Federal Prison in Bryan, Texas. pic.twitter.com/JmdAqQH4mk
— Ben Peck - KAGS 🦚👍 (@TheBenPeck) May 30, 2023
And you can read the full report here:
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Away from the debt ceiling for a moment, it has emerged that the wife of the Texas attorney general, Ken Paxton, has a vote in the impeachment proceedings against him.
The AP reports that state senator Angela Paxton could be voting on whether to restore her suspended spouse to office or banish him permanently.
It is a conflict of interest that would not be allowed in a criminal trial and one that raises an ethical cloud over the senate proceeding.
One legal expert says it will be up to Angela Paxton’s “moral compass” to decide if she will recuse herself. The impeachment charges against Ken Paxton include bribery related to his extramarital affair with an aide to a state senator.
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Explained: what has to happen now to get debt deal passed?
Here’s an explainer from Mary Yang on how the debt ceiling compromise could get passed.
What are its chances of getting through?
While lawmakers have expressed confidence that the bill would successfully get past Congress, some hardline Republicans have signaled they will not sign the deal.
Representative Chip Roy of Texas, a member of the Rules committee, has urged fellow lawmakers to vote no on the deal.
“This is not a deal that we should be taking,” Roy told Fox News’ Glenn Beck on Tuesday.
What’s in the deal?
If passed, the deal would suspend the US debt limit through 1 January 2025, well past the next US presidential election, which is in November 2024. But suspending the debt limit is a temporary measure, and the US would need to bring down the national debt or raise the ceiling by the new deadline.
The deal would keep non-defense spending roughly the same for fiscal year 2024 and raise it by 1% in fiscal year 2025.
The bill would also place new restrictions on SNAP benefits, limiting the number of individuals eligible for food stamps. Unspent emergency aid related to the Covid-19 pandemic, totaling about $30bn, will also be returned to the government.
Read the full explainer here.
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An increasing number of Freedom Caucus members speaking during Tuesday’s press conference are telling their Republican colleagues to reject the debt ceiling compromise.
Multiple HFC members warning their gop colleagues not to support this debt plan
— Olivia Beavers (@Olivia_Beavers) May 30, 2023
Bob Good: “No Republican should vote to validate affirm and own Biden's agenda, and that's what this bill does.”
— Max Cohen (@maxpcohen) May 30, 2023
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Calls to oust McCarthy if debt ceiling bill passes
Members of the House Freedom Caucus have said they will rethink the House speaker leadership if the debt ceiling agreement passes.
During a Tuesday press conference outside of the Capitol, several House Freedom Caucus members spoke out against the Biden-McCarthy deal.
Many having said the agreement does not cut spending enough or address key legislation forwarded by the Biden administration, including student loan forgiveness.
Others have publicly stated that they will move to oust McCarthy if the agreement clears the House and Senate.
About 10 members of the House Freedom Caucus are lining up at a presser railing on the McCarthy-Biden debt limit billl, including Chip Roy who just told Glenn Beck: “We’re going to have to then regroup and figure out the whole leadership arrangement again” if bill passes
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) May 30, 2023
Chip Roy says there is going to be a "reckoning" about what just occurred with the debt ceiling deal.
— Lauren Fox (@FoxReports) May 30, 2023
He says no Republican should back the legislation.
BISHOP is first R I’ve seen explicitly and publicly saying he wants to oust McCarthy. “It is inescapable to me. It has to be done.”
— Olivia Beavers (@Olivia_Beavers) May 30, 2023
“I don't make single decisions like that alone. And so it depends on what the members who have courage” also do. https://t.co/3K8YVO2Ley
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Joe Manchin: debt ceiling agreement will pass
Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia said that he “absolutely” believes the debt ceiling agreement will pass.
In an interview with West Virginia MetroNews’s Talkline, Manchin said on Tuesday he believes the compromise will quickly pass the House and Senate, despite mounting opposition to the deal.
“If you’re looking for a reason to be against something in Washington, you can always find something saying that wasn’t good enough, didn’t go far enough,” said Manchin, reported the Hill.
“The bottom line is we can not have the threat of a default for the sake of our economy,” he added.
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The White House has released more information on UK prime minister Rishi Sunak’s trip to the White House next month.
Here’s the statement from the White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre:
President Biden looks forward to welcoming Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of the United Kingdom for an Official Working Visit to the White House on Thursday, June 8 to further deepen the close and historic partnership between the United States and the United Kingdom.
Building on their recent engagements, the two leaders will review a range of global issues, including their steadfast support for Ukraine as it defends itself against Russia’s brutal war of aggression, as well as further action to bolster energy security and address the climate crisis.
The President and the Prime Minister will discuss efforts to continue strengthening our economic relationship as we confront shared economic and national security challenges. They will also review developments in Northern Ireland as part of their shared commitment to preserving the gains of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement.
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More Republican legislators have said they will vote ‘no’ on the debt ceiling compromise.
From CNN’s Haley Talbot:
Informal whip count latest —> pic.twitter.com/0uR0FZsZIh
— Haley Talbot (@haleytalbotcnn) May 30, 2023
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North Dakota governor to throw hat in ring for Republican presidential nomination
North Dakota’s governor, Doug Burgum, is expected to announce his campaign for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, the Associated Press reports.
Two Republicans with knowledge on Burgum’s plans told AP that the governor will announce his candidacy on 7 June during an event in Fargo, Burgum’s home town.
The two operatives spoke to AP anonymously, as the event has not been publicized yet.
Burgum has been governor of North Dakota since 2016.
The 66-year-old would be joining a crowded field for the Republican presidential nomination, facing off against Donald Trump, Florida governor Ron DeSantis, former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley and other candidates.
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More Republicans announcing they'll vote no on debt deal
As Biden and McCarthy rush to get votes for the debt ceiling agreement before the 5 June default deadline, more Republicans are publicly opposing the deal.
Florida lawmaker Cory Mills said he will be voting “no” on the compromise, noting that the bill’s spending cuts don’t go far enough.
From Punchbowl News’ Mica Soellner:
Florida Republican Cory Mills now among growing list of Republicans who are a “no” on the debt limit bill https://t.co/tB48Y2sQBZ
— Mica Soellner (@MicaSoellnerDC) May 30, 2023
North Carolina representative Nancy Mace has also opposed the agreement:
Washington is broken.
— Rep. Nancy Mace (@RepNancyMace) May 30, 2023
Republicans got outsmarted by a President who can’t find his pants.
I’m voting NO on the debt ceiling debacle because playing the DC game isn’t worth selling out our kids and grandkids.
From North Carolina representative Dan Bishop:
We haven’t always agreed, but she’s 💯 right. This vote will be defining for every GOP member. #NoDeal https://t.co/i5kQuAsTjL
— Rep. Dan Bishop (@RepDanBishop) May 30, 2023
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McCarthy’s position as House speaker seems safe despite disagreements within debt ceiling debate.
Here’s analysis on the issue from Politico:
Two dynamics help explain why McCarthy has been resilient — at least so far: (1) The backroom horse-trading, it turns out, helped McCarthy forge relationships with the right in a way his predecessors never did. And (2) the GOP base simply isn’t up in arms opposing him…
In fact, McCarthy’s approval rating has jumped by 10 points among Republicans since he took the gavel, hovering at 66%, according to a recent YouGov/Economist poll. Anecdotally speaking, even Biggs — who hails from a district DONALD TRUMP carried by 15 points in 2020 — told Playbook that his constituents think McCarthy’s doing “fairly well” and are “not really focusing on McCarthy’s speakership.”
BRENDAN BUCK, who worked for both Boehner and Ryan, said McCarthy appears to have learned from both — that “the worst thing a speaker can do is become a problem back home for their members,” he said. “He has gone out of his way to make sure that their support for him is never going to be a problem, minding the right every step of the way so that nobody can say: ‘You’re a vulnerability to me.’”
McCarthy also learned a thing or two about managing his right flank — bringing his conservative critics into the fold rather than seeking to marginalize them as Boehner and Ryan did. How much power he actually ceded them, though, is another question.
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Biden and McCarthy have said they believe the negotiated debt ceiling deal will pass.
But lawmakers, namely Republicans, have voiced their discontent with the latest agreement.
In an interview with Politico, Virginia representative Bob Good, a Republican, said the deal was not “much different than what we could have gotten with a Democrat majority in the House”.
Republican lawmaker Chip Roy called the tentative agreement a “turd-sandwich” in a tweet, countering claims made by McCarthy in a Fox News interview that Republicans are satisfied by the deal, the Hill reported.
1st - the leadership playbook is to line up cheerleading on phone calls to demonstrate “unity.” 2nd, not 95% - I know of more no’s than that already. 3rd - they haven’t been educated yet on what a turd-sandwich this “deal” is. They will be. https://t.co/gaJhMT6LM3
— Chip Roy (@chiproytx) May 28, 2023
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Back from Memorial Day holiday, both parties are set to have internal discussions about the latest debt ceiling deal.
Tomorrow, House Democrats will hold a closed-door meeting on the bill, which now includes some work requirements for federal assistance.
Eligibility requirements for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Snap) would be changed under the deal, raising the age from 50 to 54 for people who must work at least 20 hours a week to qualify for food-assistance benefits, reports ABC News.
Far-right Republicans will hold a press conference on the plan at 12pm eastern time today, as several members say they will vote against the deal which they argue does not go far enough.
House Republicans will then hold their own closed door meeting about the legislation at 7.30pm.
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Biden and McCarthy debt ceiling deal now faces battle to get through the House
Good morning.
Joe Biden and Kevin McCarthy’s debt ceiling agreement has come after a months-long stalemate and stalled negotiations on both sides. And it is not out of the woods yet.
The deal now faces scrutiny from House members – amid reports of criticism from both sides.
Unveiled Sunday, the deal will raise the country’s $34.1tn borrowing limit and include caps on government spending and policy changes to federal aid programs.
The compromise still needs to pass the House and Senate before 5 June, when the US could default.
Far-right Republicans have said they will vote against the deal. Some conservatives argue that the compromise doesn’t go far enough to reduce spending or target Democratic legislation, such as Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan.
For now, amid the discontentment, lawmakers say it is unlikely that party members will call for McCarthy to step down from his position as House speaker.
Meanwhile, progressive legislators are also unhappy with the latest debt ceiling plan. Many have criticized Biden for negotiating with Republicans under the threat of a default and including work requirements for federal assistance in the deal.
Here’s what’s happening today:
12pm Members of the House Freedom Caucus will hold a news conference outside the Capitol.
3pm The House rules committee meets to prepare the bill to be debated.
6.30pm Congress will vote on unrelated bills. It will give Democrat and Republican whips a first chance to count votes in person.
7.30pm House Republican leaders will host a closed-door meeting.
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