The U.S. has surpassed its $31.4 trillion debt limit, leading the Treasury Department to implement extraordinary measures.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen notified Congressional leadership Thursday morning that she would begin implementing stopgap options to keep the government funded and avoid default. However, she has stressed the measures can only be used for a limited amount of time, likely through June.
Yellen has said it’s critical Congress act in a timely manner, warning that failure to address the debt ceiling would cause irreparable harm to the U.S. economy.
"I respectfully urge Congress to act promptly to protect the full faith and credit of the United States," Yellen wrote in Thursday’s letter to congressional leaders.
Republicans, led by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, are looking to use the additional time to negotiate with Democrats; they are hoping to cut spending in exchange for raising the debt ceiling. But, Democrats are so far refusing to make concessions.
"It is something that should be done without concessions. We should not be negotiating around it," White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Wednesday. "It is the basic duty of Congress to get that done."
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed support for Russia’s “sacred fight” during a summit with President Vladimir Putin that the U.S. warned could lead to a deal to supply ammunition for Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
Child poverty in the United States more than doubled and median household income declined last year when coronavirus pandemic-era government benefits expired and inflation kept rising, according to figures released Tuesday by the U.S. Census Bureau.
Speaker Kevin McCarthy said Tuesday he is directing a House committee to open an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden over his family's business dealings, launching historic proceedings ahead of the 2024 election.
The Biden administration issued a waiver to allow banks to transfer $6 billion in frozen Iranian oil funds without facing U.S. sanctions, a key step in a prisoner swap deal.
Attorneys for former President Donald Trump requested that the judge presiding over the federal case involving attempts to overturn the 2020 election be reassigned.
