Kevin McCarthy says he will meet Biden on WEDNESDAY amid debt ceiling deadlock

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy will have his first meeting with President Joe Biden as leader of the lower house of Congress on Wednesday, where he intends to force a bipartisan bargain on government spending cuts.

The United States could be heading for a massive financial default if Congress doesn’t take action to raise the debt ceiling, allowing the country to pay its bills.

Such a massive hit to the US economy would plunge global markets into turmoil.

Speaking with CBS News’ Face The Nation on Sunday, McCarthy vowed that the United States would not default, but made it clear that he believes the stalemate is not his fault.

‘The only person standing in the way right now is the president and [Senate Majority Leader] Schumer. They won’t even pass a budget,’ said the Spokesperson

They won’t even negotiate. We now have until June. I want to make sure we have something accountable, something we can move forward on and something we can balance our debt on.’

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told Congress earlier this month that the US had hit its debt limit: the total amount of monetary debt the federal government can take on, with which it pays military salaries, social security benefits and other programs that affect millions of people.

House Republicans have made it clear they won’t agree to raising the debt ceiling without offsetting it with spending cuts elsewhere.

Meanwhile, Democrats in the White House and Senate refuse to budge on such negotiations. Biden officials have argued that raising the debt ceiling is an “obligation” on the government.

Biden officials have said the president “looks forward” to a meeting with McCarthy for further discussions, but did not specify a date.

McCarthy revealed on Sunday that the meeting is now scheduled for February 1.

Biden called McCarthy’s demand to negotiate the debt limit “mind-blowing” (pictured with First Lady Dr. Jill Biden in a Philadelphia Eagles hoodie at the Air National Guard Base from Delaware on Sunday)

‘We are going to meet this Wednesday. I know that the president said that he did not want to have any discussion, but I think it is very important that our entire government is designed to find a compromise, ”said the speaker of the House.

“I want to find a reasonable and responsible way that we can raise the debt ceiling, but take control of this rampant spending.”

But Biden made his position on any such talk clear during a speech at a union hall in Virginia last Thursday.

He called McCarthy’s refusal to pay the country’s debts without negotiating future spending cuts “mind-boggling.”

‘I will not let anyone use the full faith and credit of the United States as a bargaining chip. In the United States of America, we pay our debts,’ Biden promised.

Republican lawmakers advocating government spending cuts have yet to come to a consensus on where they want to make the cuts.

McCarthy vowed Sunday that cuts to Medicare and Social Security are “totally out of the question.”

But according to Bloomberg, he promised fiscal conservatives earlier this month to limit discretionary defense spending to 2022 levels, which could be a reduction of $75 billion.

It could create confusion and further delay with various national security hawks within the GOP already voicing opposition to cuts in defense dollars.

On Face The Nation, McCarthy said defense spending would be “protected” but did not rule out cutting that sector of the budget.

“I want to make sure that we are protected in our defense spending, but I want to make sure that it is effective and efficient,” he said.

‘I want to see every dollar we spend, no matter where it’s spent. I want to eliminate waste wherever it is.’