House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries told his caucus in a letter Sunday that President Joe Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy will speak this afternoon to complete the debt ceiling agreement, and then the legislative bill will be released by Republicans.
Negotiators struck an agreement in principle Saturday night to extend the debt ceiling and avert a catastrophic default. The legislative text of the bill will be prepared by Republicans and reviewed by the Biden administration before it is finalized, Jeffries said in the letter to Democrats.
Biden and McCarthy are expected to speak no later than 2 p.m., and “shortly thereafter the legislative bill text will be released by House Republicans and made available to the House, Senate and American people,” Jeffries said, adding that top members of the Biden administration are also set to brief the House Democratic Caucus on the deal at 5 p.m.
“It is my expectation that over the next several days, there will be multiple opportunities to review and discuss the legislation with the Biden administration in advance of any midweek vote scheduled by House Republicans,” he wrote.
The tentative agreement, which is expected to raise the country’s borrowing authority in exchange for cuts to spending, was struck after weeks of negotiations led by Biden and McCarthy. Once the legislative language is finalized, it will have to pass both the GOP-led House and Democratic-controlled Senate.
A source familiar with the agreement told NBC News it includes a two-year appropriations deal and a two-year debt limit extension, effectively resolving the issue until after the 2024 election. It’ll include work requirements for receiving federal aid under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, for Americans up to 54 years old, with exceptions for homeless people and veterans. But there will be “no changes to Medicaid,” the source said.
In an interview on “Fox News Sunday,” McCarthy said “more than 95% of all those in the conference” supports the tentative deal and members are “very excited.”
