A pitched battle that could go into summer matching President Joe Biden and congressional Democrats versus House Republicans led by Speaker Kevin McCarthy officially began Jan. 19 as Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen declared the federal government has officially reached its statutory debt ceiling.
“I respectfully request that Congress act promptly to protect the faith and credit of the United States,” Yellen told congressional leaders of both parties in a letter.
For Biden, Yellen, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), protecting the faith and credit of the country means both chambers of Congress approving an increase without conditions in the debt limit, pushing it substantially higher than the current $31.4 trillion….