The US Senate was yesterday set to take up a bill to lift the government’s US$31.4 trillion debt ceiling, with just four days left to pass the measure and send it to US President Joe Biden to sign, averting a catastrophic default.
The top Democrat and Republican in the chamber vowed to do all they could to speed along the bill negotiated by Biden and US House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy, which would suspend the debt limit until Jan. 1, 2025, in exchange for a cap on spending.
It remained to be seen whether any members of their respective caucuses, particularly hardline Republicans angry the bill did not include deeper spending cuts, would use the Senate’s arcane rules to try to slow down its passage.
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The US Department of the Treasury said that it would be unable to pay all its bills on Monday next week if the US Congress fails to act.
The Republican-controlled House passed the bill on Wednesday evening in a 314-117 vote. McCarthy lost the support of dozens of his fellow Republicans.
“Once this bill reaches the Senate, I will move to bring it to the floor as soon as possible,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said on Wednesday.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell also signaled that he would work for fast passage, saying: “I’ll be proud to support it without delay.”
Biden’s Democrats control the Senate by a thin 51-49 margin. The chamber’s rules require 60 votes to advance most legislation, meaning at least nine Republican votes are needed to pass most bills, including the debt ceiling deal.
The measure faces opposition from the right, with some Republicans angry the spending cuts were not deeper, and left, with some Democrats opposed to new work requirements imposed on some anti-poverty programs.
However, most lawmakers acknowledged they could not stomach the prospect of barreling ahead into default.
Schumer and McConnell were working behind the scenes to dissuade opponents from erecting procedural barriers that would delay passage.
Typically on important, contentious bills such as this one, the two Senate leaders find a way to allow just a couple of rebelling senators from each party to offer amendments under fast-track procedures, knowing they would lack the votes for passage.
“Unless you want to stay here through the weekend, I think some of our guys are going to need to get their votes” on their amendments, US Senator John Thune said.
Any Senate changes to the bill at this stage would mean it would have to go back to the House for final passage, a delay that could make the first-ever US government default a reality.
Republican US Senator Rand Paul who regularly seeks such last-minute amendments, told CBS News on Wednesday that he would not employ parliamentary procedures to delay action.
Tropical Storm Usagi strengthened to a typhoon yesterday morning and remains on track to brush past southeastern Taiwan from tomorrow to Sunday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was approximately 950km east-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost point, the CWA said. It is expected to enter the Bashi Channel and then turn north, moving into waters southeast of Taiwan, it said. The agency said it could issue a sea warning in the early hours of today and a land warning in the afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the storm was moving at
DISCONTENT: The CCP finds positive content about the lives of the Chinese living in Taiwan threatening, as such video could upset people in China, an expert said Chinese spouses of Taiwanese who make videos about their lives in Taiwan have been facing online threats from people in China, a source said yesterday. Some young Chinese spouses of Taiwanese make videos about their lives in Taiwan, often speaking favorably about their living conditions in the nation compared with those in China, the source said. However, the videos have caught the attention of Chinese officials, causing the spouses to come under attack by Beijing’s cyberarmy, they said. “People have been messing with the YouTube channels of these Chinese spouses and have been harassing their family members back in China,”
UPDATED FORECAST: The warning covered areas of Pingtung County and Hengchun Peninsula, while a sea warning covering the southern Taiwan Strait was amended The Central Weather Administration (CWA) at 5:30pm yesterday issued a land warning for Typhoon Usagi as the storm approached Taiwan from the south after passing over the Philippines. As of 5pm, Usagi was 420km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan proper’s southernmost tip, with an average radius of 150km, the CWA said. The land warning covered areas of Pingtung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春), and came with an amended sea warning, updating a warning issued yesterday morning to cover the southern part of the Taiwan Strait. No local governments had announced any class or office closures as of press time last night. The typhoon
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said there are four weather systems in the western Pacific, with one likely to strengthen into a tropical storm and pose a threat to Taiwan. The nascent tropical storm would be named Usagi and would be the fourth storm in the western Pacific at the moment, along with Typhoon Yinxing and tropical storms Toraji and Manyi, the CWA said. It would be the first time that four tropical cyclones exist simultaneously in November, it added. Records from the meteorology agency showed that three tropical cyclones existed concurrently in January in 1968, 1991 and 1992.
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