Senate Moving Toward McConnell Pathway to Prevent Default

U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks today on the Senate floor regarding the debt limit:

“Republican and Democratic members and staff have negotiated through the night in good faith. The Senate is moving toward the path I laid out yesterday to spare the American people a manufactured crisis.

“All year, the Democratic government has made unprecedented and repeated use of reconciliation to pass radical policies on party-line votes. So, back in July, Republicans informed our colleagues they would need to pursue any long-term increase in the debt limit through that same process.

“The President, the Speaker, and the Democratic Leader had three months’ notice to do their jobs.

“But for two and a half months, the Democratic leaders did nothing and then complained they were short on time.

“The majority didn’t have a plan to prevent default. So we stepped forward.

“The pathway our Democratic colleagues have accepted will spare the American people any near-term crisis, while definitively resolving the majority’s excuse that they lacked time to address the debt limit through the 304 reconciliation process.

“Now there will be no question: They’ll have plenty of time.

“Or, if our colleagues would instead prefer a more traditional bipartisan discussion around basic governance, they can stop trying to ram through yet another reckless taxing and spending spree that would hurt families and help China.

“That would be the path toward that kind of discussion.”