Willie R. Tubbs, FISM News

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With House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and President Joe Biden making little headway on an agreement to raise the national debt ceiling, some Republicans are beginning to wonder aloud if the White House is overstating the direness of the situation.

Conservatives remain united in their desire to force spending cuts from Biden, but a pair of congressmen have questioned the urgency with which the Biden administration wants to get the deal done.

The common line from the left and right has been that the nation faces a default as soon as June 1 without action, a sentiment both sides base on remarks from Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) wants Yellen to produce evidence that June 1 is the drop-dead date.

“Invite Yellen to prove to your committee that June 1 is truly the deadline for ‘default,” Gaetz tweeted to House Financial Services Committee Chairman Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.). “We shouldn’t just take her word on it after she blew the call on [Inflation, Interest Rates, and Bank failures.] I think her Ouija board may be broken. We don’t have a revenue problem and tons of money is showing up June 15! Call their bluff & cut the spending.”

.@PatrickMcHenry –

Invite Yellen to prove to your committee that June 1 is truly the deadline for “default.”

We shouldn’t just take her word on it after she blew the call on:

– Inflation
– Interest Rates
– Bank failures

I think her ouija board may be broken.

We don’t…

— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) May 23, 2023

The Hill reports that Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.) has suggested subpoenaing Yellen to explain her calculations.

McHenry and McCarthy, though, have indicated they believe the deadline to be authentic.

“Let’s remember how we got here — 10 days out from a Biden default on the national debt,” McCarthy tweeted along with a timeline of events. “He ignored the looming crisis for months, despite my repeated calls to negotiate. Because of his inaction, he risks bumbling into the first default in American history.”

In response to McCarthy, McHenry wrote, “The timeline does not lie. @POTUS has slow-walked this country to the brink of default. I am glad he is finally at the table, but he needs to get serious about getting our fiscal house in order.”

The timeline does not lie. @POTUS has slow-walked this country to the brink of default. I am glad he is finally at the table, but he needs to get serious about getting our fiscal house in order. https://t.co/3miTRA0f8C

— Patrick McHenry (@PatrickMcHenry) May 24, 2023

Norman also retweeted McCarthy’s timeline.

Meanwhile, President Biden continues to fluctuate between expressing optimism about a deal and bristling at Republicans for their unwillingness to bend.

“I just concluded a productive meeting with Speaker McCarthy about the need to prevent default and avoid a catastrophe for our economy,” Biden said in a statement. “We reiterated once again that default is off the table and the only way to move forward is in good faith toward a bipartisan agreement.”