McConnell doubles down on debt ceiling fight

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) doubled down Monday on his warning that Republicans won’t help raise the debt ceiling as Democrats appear poised to exclude it from a spending package they can pass along party lines.

“Here’s the comedy, they won’t let Republicans have any say in this monstrosity but they want our help raising their credit card to make it happen,” McConnell said, referring to Democrats’ plans to pass a $3.5 trillion spending package.

“Democrats want Republicans to help them raise the debt limit so they can keep spending historic sums of money with zero Republican input and zero Republican votes,” he added.

Congress and the Trump administration agreed to suspend the debt ceiling in 2019. The borrowing limit then kicked back in earlier this month, with the Treasury Department using “extraordinary measures” to help keep the government solvent.

But they’re expected to need to formally raise, or suspend, the debt ceiling later this year.

Republicans, bristling over the Democratic spending package, have been pushing Democrats to include it in a massive spending package they will try to pass without GOP votes under a process known as reconciliation.

But Democrats released a budget resolution on Monday that includes instructions for drafting the spending package that did not include language paving the way for including a debt ceiling hike.

That means Democrats will need GOP support in order to raise the debt ceiling. To raise it outside of the budget process, they will need at least 10 Republican votes.

Democrats could also try to attach it to a must-pass bill, like a government funding measure, to try to jam Republicans into voting for it.