President Joe Biden on Sunday called on Republicans to agree to a compromise in debt-ceiling talks, as he wrapped up a visit to Japan for the G-7 summit and prepared to return to Washington, DC. Go beyond their extreme positions, because most of what they’ve already proposed is simply, frankly, unacceptable,” Biden said during a news conference in Japan. “It’s time for Republicans to accept that there’s not going to be a bipartisan deal just — just — on their partisan terms. They’re going to have to move, too,” he said. Biden’s comments on the movement echoed those made by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy two days ago. South- The House Republican from central California told reporters Friday that “there needs to be movement by the White House, and we don’t have any movement yet, so, yes, we have to take a break.” was appointed, earlier Friday indicated that Republicans were pressing the pause button as the deal framework was being looked at, the president’s comments in Hiroshima came as investors were watching for fresh signs of a bipartisan deal that would lift the federal government’s borrowing limit and a market-shaking default. Biden accused some Republicans of risking the economic damage of a default because of the 2024 White House race. is responsible, Biden will take the blame, and one way to ensure that is Biden. Not re-elected,” he said. During Sunday’s news conference, Biden, who cut his trip short due to the debt-ceiling crisis (which led to the cancellation of the Quad Summit in Australia), said he and McCarthy would speak later on Sunday when he returns to the US. “I guess he wanted to deal directly with me,” the president said, “to make sure we were on the same page.” “Our teams will continue to work,” Biden also said. When asked about McCarthy’s call for lower government spending next year than this year, Biden said his side is “ready to cut spending as well as raise revenue,” citing tax increases. He also said his team is awaiting the GOP response to the White House’s latest counterproposal. Graves, a Louisiana Republican, suggested in his Friday-morning characterization of the debt-ceiling talks as a “break” that Biden White House representatives were “unreasonable.” Talks resumed Friday evening, but negotiators quickly called it quits for the night, and little progress was reported Saturday, with McCarthy telling reporters he didn’t think he “would have the ability to move forward until the president comes back.” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned on May 1 and again last week that the US could default on June 1 if Congress does not raise the debt ceiling. The Bipartisan Policy Center and the Congressional Budget Office each offered similar estimates. Biden has for months called for a so-called clean increase of the $31.4 trillion cap on federal debt issuance, arguing that the time to address future government spending levels is during the annual budget-writing process. In August 2011, lawmakers approved raising the debt limit just hours before a possible government default. Within days, the US lost its triple-A credit rating from S&P for the first time in history, with the rating agency saying the American political system had become less stable. US stocks SPX, -0.14% DJIA, -0.33% tumbled in August 2011 following a debt downgrade by S&P. Read now: Debt-ceiling standoff: Here’s what could go into bipartisan deal: Biden expresses confidence in reaching debt-ceiling deal: ‘America will not default’ ‘Doomsday machine’: What could happen if debt ceiling is breached Here he is, Ukraine’s Zelensky attends the G-7 summit in Hiroshima where world leaders approve of Russia.
