US House progressives warned Monday they would fight any debt-limit agreement that includes new restrictions Republicans are seeking, such as food assistance to the poor.
(Bloomberg) — US House progressives warned Monday they would fight any debt-limit agreement that includes new restrictions Republicans are seeking, such as food assistance to the poor.
“If they give on these core democratic values, and I hope they don’t, there will be a huge backlash,” Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal, a Washington State Democrat, told reporters Monday.
The White House and House Republicans, led by Speaker Kevin McCarthy, are running against the clock in negotiations to raise the debt ceiling and avoid a US default that could occur as soon as June 1.
President Joe Biden has said he wants to raise the debt limit with no strings attached, but Republicans are demanding measures aimed to cut government spending, such as imposing additional work requirements for social programs.
When asked Sunday if he would support tougher work requirements proposed by Republicans, Biden said he had supported some before, “but for Medicaid it’s a different story” and that he was waiting for a specific Republican plan.
House Republicans have proposed raising the age cutoff for work requirements to 56 from 50 for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps. The program requires adults under age 50 without a disability or dependent children to work 20 hours per week.
Representative Jamaal Bowman, a progressive New York Democrat, said he was “very concerned” about the White House giving in to Republican demands and that he would not support a package including the additional work requirements.
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, another New York Democrat, said the Republican demands for broad spending cuts in order to avert a US default are “profoundly destructive.”
Ocasio-Cortez said the White House could expect a fight from progressives against “nearly any significant concession” to the GOP demands.
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