Matt Bush, FISM News

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House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and President Joe Biden had about an hour-long meeting Monday calling the meeting “productive” but the two sides still have not come to an agreement on how to raise the debt ceiling and avoid default.

“President Biden and I just had a productive meeting in our negotiation to responsibly raise the debt limit. It should have happened months ago, but there is a path for him to avoid defaulting on the debt,” McCarthy tweeted.

President Biden and I just had a productive meeting in our negotiation to responsibly raise the debt limit. It should have happened months ago, but there is a path for him to avoid defaulting on the debt. https://t.co/u3rDJmrl7v

— Kevin McCarthy (@SpeakerMcCarthy) May 22, 2023

Even when speaking in front of cameras, McCarthy appeared hopeful and spoke with a congeniality that has been missing from previous conversations, but there is still no deal.

Biden had a similar tweet following the meeting: “I just concluded a productive meeting with Speaker McCarthy about the need to prevent default and avoid a catastrophe for our economy. 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.”

I just concluded a productive meeting with Speaker McCarthy about the need to prevent default and avoid a catastrophe for our economy.

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.

While…

— President Biden (@POTUS) May 23, 2023

Biden used similar words and was also more congenial after this meeting than others. He ended the tweet stating, “While there are areas of disagreement, the Speaker and I, and his lead negotiators Chairman McHenry and Congressman Graves, and our staffs will continue to discuss the path forward.”

The “areas of disagreement” described by the President, however, still seem quite difficult to overcome.

DECREASED SPENDING, WORK REQUIREMENTS, AND TAX ENFORCEMENT

According to the Washington Post, Kevin McCarthy is still telling the president that he has “to spend less than you spent last year.” This is in reference to large federal spending cuts that Republicans are seeking in exchange for raising the debt ceiling.

McCarthy even seemed to double down on work requirements for certain Americans that receive food stamps, one of the proposed cuts that Biden has met with the most opposition.

The president, on the other hand, is still arguing that taking into account a rise in government revenue should be on the table during negotiations.

“The president said at the start of Monday’s meeting that the two sides should be looking at closing tax loopholes and ensuring wealthy Americans pay ‘their fair share,’” the Hill reported.

“The problem is not revenue, the problem is spending,” McCarthy said after the meeting in response to this argument. He also seemed to take defense cuts off the table as a part of the negotiations.

In the end, however, there is positive movement towards a deal and both sides seem motivated to come to an agreement before the June 1 debt limit deadline.

“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,” Biden said in a statement after their meeting.

McCarthy echoed those sentiments after Monday’s meeting as well.

“We know the deadline,” the speaker said. “I think the president and I are going to talk every day.”

The national debt stands at $31.4 trillion, and if the two sides do not come to an agreement to raise the debt ceiling, the United States could default on its obligations for the first time in history.

Because it would be an unprecedented occurrence, it is impossible to predict exactly what would happen, but as the Washington Post states, it could “potentially tip the nation into recession and plunge global financial markets into chaos.”