WASHINGTON, June 1 (Reuters) – The U.S. Senate is on track to pass a bill to lift the government’s $31.4 trillion debt ceiling late on Thursday, Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced, adding, “We are avoiding default tonight.”
All 100 senators reached an agreement to debate up to 11 amendments and then promptly vote on passing the legislation, before a Monday deadline for suspending the debt limit through Jan. 1, 2025. If the plan succeeds, Congress would quickly send the bill to President Joe Biden to sign, averting a catastrophic default, Schumer said.
The House passed the bill on Wednesday.
[1/3] U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) arrives for his news conference after the weekly Senate Democratic caucus policy luncheon at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S. May 31, 2023. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
“America can breathe a sigh of relief, a sigh of relief because in this process we are avoiding default,” Schumer said in remarks to the Senate.
The expectation is that the amendments will not garner enough support to be attached to the legislation. If any one of them does, the measure would have to be sent back to the House of Representatives, which could increase the possibility of a first-ever default on Washington’s debt payments.
Schumer and his Republican counterpart Minority Leader Mitch McConnell vowed to do all they could to speed along the bill negotiated by Biden and Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, which would suspend the debt limit, essentially temporarily removing it, in exchange for a cap on spending.
The Treasury Department has warned it will be unable to pay all its bills on June 5 if Congress fails to act.
Reporting by Richard Cowan, David Morgan, Moira Warburton and Gram Slattery; Editing by Scott Malone, Alistair Bell and Diane Craft
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