House Freedom Caucus Vows No Further Negotiations on Debt Ceiling Until Senate Passes Its Bill: ‘We Have a Winning Hand’

The House Freedom Caucus released a statement on Thursday vowing “no further discussion” on raising the debt ceiling until the Senate passes the House bill, which would raise the borrowing limit while cutting spending.

“The U.S. House of Representatives has done its job in passing the Limit, Save, Grow Act to provide a mechanism to raise the debt ceiling. This legislation is the official position of the House Freedom Caucus and, by its passage with 217 votes, the entire House Republican Conference,” the caucus wrote, adding:

The House Freedom Caucus calls on Speaker McCarthy and Senate Republicans to use every leverage and tool at their disposal to ensure the Limit, Save, Grow Act is signed into law. There should be no further discussion until the Senate passes the legislation.

CNN’s Manu Raju caught up with some members of the caucus and asked for more details on their stance. “So you’ll be okay with voting with something less than what the House?” Raju asked Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC).

“We’re not going to accept anything other than what we put. I would suggest that… McCarthy should not meet until he [Biden] put something in writing. His words have no meaning. Put it in writing if it’s anything less. We are not going to accept it,” Norman answered, referring to the House bill.

“You don’t think he’s going to make any changes and a compromise with the White House?” Raju asked Rep. Bob Good (R-VA) about the prospect of McCarthy compromising with Biden.

“Why would we? We have a winning hand,” Biden shot back.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has warned that if no deal is reached by June 1 the U.S. could face an economically catastrophic default on its debt. The House bill would raise the U.S. borrowing limit by $1.5 trillion and initiate $4.8 trillion in spending cuts. President Joe Biden has made clear his unwillingness to use debt ceiling negotiations to make spending cuts and has urged House Republicans to use the budgeting process instead.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) called the House bill “dead on arrival” in the Senate and Biden has vowed to veto it should it make it to his desk.

Watch the clip above via CNN.

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