Mitch McConnell says the GOP will vote for the US to default on its debt – By Ayelet Sheffey and Joseph Zeballos-Roig (Business Insider) / Sept 20 2021
- Pelosi and Schumer said they would attach a debt-ceiling suspension to the government-funding bill.
- McConnell quickly struck down the idea, saying the GOP would not vote for the legislation.
- They effectively dared him to vote for the US to default on its debt, and he met their dare.
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As the White House stressed the urgency of raising the debt ceiling to avoid a government default, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said on Monday that the House would pass legislation to fund the government that includes a debt-limit suspension through the end of next year.
It was a dare to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who would need to lend ten Republican votes for it to avert the filibuster and clear the Senate. The Kentucky Republican was unfazed.
“We will not support legislation that raises the debt limit,” McConnell said after Pelosi and Schumer’s announcement. “Democrats do not need our help.”
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told Congress earlier this month that the government’s money would likely run out in October because of financial uncertainty caused by the pandemic.
