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The latest on the US debt ceiling deal: Live updates


7:16 p.m. ET, May 28, 2023

Why the debt limit marathon is far from over

The debt ceiling agreement clinched by House Republicans and the White House late Saturday was the culmination of mad-dash negotiations over the course of the past week that regularly stretched late into the night.
But the marathon is far from over, and there is little certainty the nation will avoid a default as both parties work to rally support around the package.

Here are some of the elements party leaders will have to deal with as they race to avoid an economic meltdown:

A tough sell to members of both parties: House members on both the left and right are already balking at some of the details said to be included in the debt ceiling package.

Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal told CNN that Democratic leaders should be concerned about securing progressive support for the deal. Meanwhile, hard-line conservative Republicans who had demanded larger spending cuts threatened to withhold their support.

House Rules Committee looms large: McCarthy’s first real test will be Tuesday in the House Rules panel, which must adopt a rule to allow the bill to be approved by a majority of the House.

To win the speakership in January, McCarthy agreed to name three conservative hard-liners — Reps. Ralph Norman of South Carolina, Chip Roy of Texas and Thomas Massie of Kentucky — to the committee, a major concession since the powerful panel is usually stacked with close allies of leadership.

Norman and Roy have already emerged as sharp critics of the debt limit deal, while Massie has been quiet as he waits for the bill text to be released.

In the Senate: Any one member can slow down the process by as long as a week, adding another layer of uncertainty as Washington rushes to avoid default.

The clock is ticking: Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen set June 5 as the date the government will run out of cash to pay its bills in full and on time. The US has never before defaulted, and economists predict the consequences would be catastrophic.



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