By Ben Ritz
Both the Congressional Budget Office and the Treasury Department warned Monday that the federal government is likely to exhaust its authority to pay its bills on June 1st if Congress fails to raise or suspend the federal debt limit before the end of this month. The fast-approaching deadline, which previous projections placed far later in the summer or early fall, creates new urgency for President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to strike a deal. Republicans will either need to abandon their attempt to extract meaningful policy concessions in exchange for a debt limit increase or offer President Biden a short-term increase that creates room for a realistic negotiation process. Refusing to do so would be the height of irresponsibility and place the blame for causing the first-ever default on America’s national debt squarely on the GOP’s shoulders.
