CRISIS (ALMOST) AVERTED

Biden, McCarthy Reach Final Agreement to Avoid Debt-Limit Default

Speaker Kevin McCarthy said he believed “a majority of Republicans” would vote for the legislative package.

President Joe Biden said Sunday evening that he and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy had put the finishing touches on a bipartisan agreement to raise the nation’s debt ceiling and avoid a “catastrophic default.” In a brief statement to reporters at the White House, Biden said he had “good news” to share. “The agreement prevents the worst possible crisis, a default, for the first time in our nation’s history,” he said. “Takes the threat of a catastrophic default off the table.” The language of the deal was finalized on Sunday, with an “agreement in principle” having been hammered out on Saturday night. The legislative package, which is expected to total less than 150 pages, could go before the House as soon as Wednesday, and then quickly on to the Senate. Biden, who said he was confident the deal would reach his desk, “strongly” urged both chambers of Congress to pass the agreement. Though both Democrats and Republicans criticized the broad outlines of the tentative deal’s provisions, McCarthy said in an appearance on Fox News Sunday that he believed “a majority of Republicans” and “a lot of Democrats” would vote for the agreement.