House races to vote on gov’t funding, debt as GOP digs in
The House rushed headlong Tuesday into a vote on legislation to fund the government, suspend the federal debt limit and provide disaster and refugee aid, forcing a showdown with Republicans who oppose the package despite the risk of a fiscal crisis.
The federal government faces a shutdown if funding stops at the Sept. 30 end of the fiscal year, midnight next Thursday. At the same time, the U.S. risks defaulting on its accumulated debt load if its borrowing limits are not waived or adjusted.
Biden’s plan aims to not just rebuild the country after the COVID-19 crisis and economic fallout, but begin to change longstanding federal spending patterns in ways that provide more services to more Americans, and attempt to level growing income inequality.
With Republicans opposed to Biden’s vision, Democrats have no votes to spare in the Senate, and just a few votes’ margin in the House.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has promised a Sept. ...
