Two House Democrats to miss debt ceiling vote

Two House Democrats will be away from Capitol Hill for health-related reasons as lawmakers race to vote on the debt ceiling agreement.

Rep. Angie Craig (D-Minn.) will be out after suffering an ankle injury over Memorial Day weekend — and Rep. Deborah Ross (D-N.C.) will miss voting this week after testing positive for COVID-19.

“While getting some yard work done at home in Minnesota on Monday evening, Rep. Craig tripped and injured her ankle,” her chief of staff Nick Coe said in a statement posted to Craig’s Twitter. “She was transported to a local hospital where she was diagnosed with a bimalleolar fracture, as well as a dislocated ankle.”

Coe said Craig is scheduled to undergo ankle repair surgery Thursday and has been advised by her physician not to fly beforehand or immediately after.

“As a result, Rep. Craig will miss votes in Congress this week related to the Bipartisan Budget Agreement,” Coe wrote, noting that the congresswoman “looks forward to getting back to work” for her constituents “as soon as possible.”

Ross said she tested positive for COVID-19 Tuesday morning and “will not be able to vote this week since proxy voting ended.”

“While I am disappointed to be missing such a consequential week in DC, I support the bipartisan agreement that [President Biden] has negotiated to prevent a catastrophic default,” Ross said on Twitter.

After weeks of tensions and recent negotiations, Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) announced Saturday they reached a tentative agreement on the debt ceiling, and the bill deal was released Sunday.

The bill now goes before the House and Senate just days ahead of the June 5 “X-date,” past which the Treasury Department has said it will run out of money to pay the nation’s bills and exhaust ways to ward off default.

House GOP leadership is aiming to bring the bill to the floor for a vote Wednesday.