U.S. SENATOR KATIE BRITT, COLLEAGUES URGE PRESIDENT BIDEN TO NEGOTIATE ON DEBT LIMIT

Washington, D.C., May 8, 2023 – U.S. Senator Katie Britt (R-Ala.) joined U.S. Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) and a group of 41 Republican colleagues in calling for the Senate to only pass a fiscally responsible increase in the debt limit that is accompanied by spending controls.

The debt limit sets the amount of money that the U.S. Department of the Treasury is legally allowed to borrow to pay the country’s financial obligations. The national debt is currently more than $31.7 trillion.

In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N. Y.), the Senators said that they would oppose any legislation to raise the nation’s debt limit that is not built on fiscally responsible principles and urged President Biden and Democratic leaders in Congress to negotiate a commonsense solution in good faith.

“Our economy is in free fall due to unsustainable fiscal policies. This trajectory must be addressed with fiscal reforms. Moreover, recent Treasury projections have reinforced the urgency of addressing the debt ceiling. The House has taken a responsible first step in coming to the table with their proposals. It is imperative that the president now do the same,” the Senators wrote in their letter.

In addition to Senators Britt and Lee, signatories of the letter include Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R-S. Dak.) and U.S. Senators John Barasso (R-Wyo.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), John Boozman (R-Ark.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Ted Budd (R-N. C.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W. Va.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Kevin Cramer (R-N. Dak.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Deb Fischer (R-Nebr.), Lindsey Graham (R-S. C.), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), John Hoeven (R-N. Dak.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Roger Marshall (R-Kans.), Jerry Moran (R-Kans.), Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), Pete Ricketts (R-Nebr.), James Risch (R-Idaho), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Mike Rounds (R-S. Dak.), Tim Scott (R-S. C.) Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), and Todd Young (R-Ind.).

House Republicans, under the leadership of Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), passed the Limit, Save, Grow Act of 2023, which would responsibly raise the debt ceiling in addition to making topline spending cuts, putting limitations on the growth of future government spending, imposing work requirements for some participants of entitlement programs, reclaiming unspent COVID-19 relief dollars, and reforming the federal permitting process.

Both President Biden and Senator Schumer have refused to negotiate on the debt ceiling for months, despite consistent willingness by Republican leaders to find common ground.

The text of the full letter can be found below.

Dear Leader Schumer,

The Senate Republican conference is united behind the House Republican conference in support of spending cuts and structural budget reform as a starting point for negotiations on the debt ceiling.

Our economy is in free fall due to unsustainable fiscal policies. This trajectory must be addressed with fiscal reforms. Moreover, recent Treasury projections have reinforced the urgency of addressing the debt ceiling. The House has taken a responsible first step in coming to the table with their proposals. It is imperative that the president now do the same. 

As such, we will not be voting for cloture on any bill that raises the debt ceiling without substantive spending and budget reforms. 

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