Biden says debt ceiling invoice avoids catastrophic financial default

US President Joe Biden addresses the nation on averting a default and the bipartisan budget deal in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC on June 2, 2023.

Pool | Via Reuters

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden made his first address in the Oval Office Friday night to discuss a bill to raise the debt ceiling while limiting federal spending, calling it a “critical” deal. He wants to sign the bill on Saturday.

“Nobody got everything they wanted, but the American people got what they needed. We averted an economic crisis and collapse,” Biden said.

The debt ceiling compromise proposal passed the Senate by a vote of 63 to 36 on Thursday night, garnering enough bipartisan support to clear the chamber’s 60-vote threshold and avoid a filibuster. On Wednesday, after about 72 hours, it made its way through the House of Representatives, passing 314-117.

There is little time for agreement: the Treasury Department estimated that the federal government would run out of money on June 5 if the debt ceiling had not been lifted.

“This is vital,” Biden said. “Critical to all of the progress we have made over the past few years is maintaining the full confidence and credit of the United States and enacting a budget that will continue to grow our economy and reflect our values ​​as a nation. “

Without the agreement, federal obligations such as Social Security, Medicare, and military paychecks would not have been paid. And if the debt ceiling was not raised, it would have roiled global financial markets and led to US job losses

The bill comes after weeks of intense negotiations between Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and the White House. The final deal gave conservatives several ideological political victories in exchange for their votes to raise the debt ceiling beyond next year’s presidential election and into 2025.