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WASHINGTON (AP) Debt limit talks between the White House and House Republicans stopped, started and stopped again Friday at the U.S. Capitol, a dizzying series of events in high-stakes negotiations to avoid a potentially catastrophic federal default.

President Joe Bidens administrationis reaching for a dealwith Republicans led by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy as the nation faces a deadline as soon as June 1 to raise the country's borrowing limit, now at $31 trillion, to keep paying the nations bills. Republicans are demandingsteep spending cutsthe Democrats oppose.

Negotiations came to an abrupt standstill earlier in the day when McCarthy said its time to pause talks. But the negotiating teams convened again in the evening only to quickly call it quits for the night.

Biden, attending the Group of Seven summit in Japan, continued to express optimism that an agreement will be reached, saying that negotiating happens in stages.

I still believe we'll be able to avoid a default and get something done, he said.

His press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, earlier had acknowledged the difficulty of the talks.

Theres no question we have serious differences," she said, without outlining any of them.

Top Republican negotiators for McCarthy said after the evening session that they were uncertain on next steps, though it's likely discussions will resume over the weekend. The White House publicly expressed optimism that a resolution could be reached if parties negotiated in good faith.

We reengaged, had a very, very candid discussion, talking about where we are, talking about where things need to be, whats reasonably acceptable," said Rep. Garret Graves, R-La., a top McCarthy ally leading the talks for his side.

Another Republican negotiator, Rep. Patrick McHenry of North Carolina, was asked if he was confident an agreement over budget issues could be reached with the White House. He replied, No.

As the White House team left the nighttime session, counselor to the president Steve Ricchetti, who is leading talks for the Democrats, said he was hopeful. We're going to keep working, he said.

Biden had already planned to cut short the rest of his trip and is expected to return to Washington Sunday night.

Earlier in the day, McCarthy said resolution to the standoff is easy, if only Biden's team would agree to somespending cutsRepublicans are demanding. The biggest impasse was over the fiscal 2024 top-line budget amount, according to a person briefed on the talks and granted anonymity to discuss them. Democrats staunchly oppose the steep reductions Republicans have put on the table as potentially harmful to Americans, and are insisting that Republicans agree to tax hikes on the wealthy, in addition to spending cuts, to close the deficit.

Weve got to get movement by the White House and we dont have any movement yet,McCarthy, R-Calif.,told reporters at the Capitol. "So, yeah, weve got to pause.

White House communications director Ben LaBolt said Saturday that Any serious budget negotiation must include discussion both of spending and of revenues, but Republicans have refused to discuss revenue.

He added: "President Biden will not accept a wishlist of extreme MAGA priorities that would punish the middle class and neediest Americans and set our economic progress back."

Jean-Pierre insisted Biden was not negotiating on raising the borrowing limit, despite the clear linkage in talks between securing a budget deal and raising the debt ceiling.

It is not negotiable we should not be negotiating on the debt, she said.

Wall Streetturned loweras negotiations came to a sudden halt. Experts have warned that even the threat of a debt default would could spark a recession.

Republicans argue the nation's deficit spending needs to get under control, aiming to roll back spending to fiscal 2022 levels and restrict future growth. But Biden's team is countering that the caps Republicans proposed in their House-passed bill would amount to 30% reductions in some programs if Defense and veterans are spared, according to a memo from the Office of Management and Budget.

Any deal would need the support of both Republicans and Democrats to find approval in a divided Congress and be passed into law. Negotiators are eyeing a more narrow budget cap deal of a few years, rather than the decade-long caps Republicans initially wanted, and clawing back some $30 billion of unspent COVID-19 funds.

Still up for debate are policy changes, including a framework for permitting reforms to speed the development of energy projects, as well as the Republican push to impose work requirements on government aid recipients that Biden has been open to but the House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries has said was a "nonstarter."

Look, we cant be spending more money next year, McCarthy said at the Capitol. "We have to spend less than we spent the year before. Its pretty easy.

McCarthy faces pressures from his hard-right flank to cut the strongest deal possible for Republicans, and he risks a threat to his leadership as speaker if he fails to deliver. Many House Republicans are unlikely to accept any deal with the White House.

The internal political dynamics confronting the embattled McCarthy leave the Democrats skeptical about giving away too much to the Republicans and driving off the support they will need to pass any compromise through Congress.

Biden is facing increased pushback from Democrats, particularly progressives, who argue the reductions will fall too heavily on domestic programs that Americans rely on.

Some Democrats want Biden to invoke his authorityunder the 14th amendmentto raise the debt ceiling on his own, an idea that raises legal questions and that the president has so far said he is not inclined to consider.

Pressure on McCarthy comes from the conservative House Freedom Caucus, which said late Thursday there should be no further discussions until the Senate takes action on the House Republican plan. That bill approved last month would raise the debt limit into 2024 in exchange for spending caps and policy changes. Biden has said he would veto that Republican measure.

In the Senate, which is controlled by majority Democrats, Republican leader Mitch McConnell has taken a backseat publicly, and is pushing Biden to strike a deal directly with McCarthy.

They are the only two who can reach an agreement, McConnell said in a tweet. It is past time for the White House to get serious. Time is of the essence.

___

Miller reported from Hiroshima, Japan. Associated Press Business Writer Stan Choe and writers Kevin Freking, Seung Min Kim, Stephen Groves and Mary Clare Jalonick in Washington and Josh Boak in Hiroshima, Japan, contributed to this report.

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Debt limit talks start, stop as Republicans, White House face 'serious ... - Chattanooga Times Free Press

House Republicans on Wednesday repelled an effort by Democrats to force a vote on expelling Representative George Santos of New York, who was charged last week in a 13-count federal indictment covering wire fraud, unlawful monetary transactions, stealing public funds and lying on financial disclosures.

Republicans voted along party line 221 to 204, with seven Democrats voting present to refer the resolution to expel Mr. Santos to the House Ethics Committee, which has been investigating Mr. Santoss finances and campaign activity for months.

The measure to expel Mr. Santos, introduced by Representative Robert Garcia, a Democrat of California, was unlikely to succeed in the House, where it would have required a two-thirds supermajority to pass. Republicans hold a majority so thin that Mr. Santoss vote remains crucial, reducing the political incentive for them to support his ouster.

Indeed, by delaying the vote, House Republicans including some who have called on Mr. Santos to resign avoided having to commit to a firm position on his behavior. But their actions also may be construed as a tacit endorsement of Mr. Santoss remaining in Congress as he faces ethical and legal inquiries.

Speaker Kevin McCarthy has for months deferred action and defended Mr. Santoss right to his seat, arguing that the House should not punish Mr. Santos without a formal report by the Ethics Committee. But a handful of Republicans, many of them first-term representatives from New York, have for months said that Mr. Santos was unfit to serve and demanded that he resign.

A vote to expel Mr. Santos threatened to put those New York representatives, most of whom flipped swing districts that will be prime targets for Democrats next year, in a politically thorny position. Voting for Mr. Santoss expulsion would have put them at odds with their party. But voting against it might have made them appear hypocritical after months of forcefully denouncing Mr. Santos.

That tension was on display when Representative Anthony DEsposito, the first House Republican to call for Mr. Santoss resignation, introduced the motion to refer Mr. Santoss expulsion to the Ethics Committee.

Mr. DEsposito, who represents a district adjacent to Mr. Santoss, said that he would have voted to expel Mr. Santos. But since he knew the effort would fall short of the votes it needed, he said, he believed this is the quickest way of ridding the House of Representatives of this scourge on government.

After the vote, Mr. Santos, who voted with Republicans, said, I look forward to seeing the process play out. And if the Ethics Committee finds a reason to remove me, that is the process.

The timeline for the House Ethics Committees investigation remains unclear. The committee did not open its inquiry into Mr. Santos until March, nearly two months after two Democratic lawmakers first requested it do so. It is often criticized by government watchdog groups for moving too slowly.

The criminal case against Mr. Santos could further delay the committees work. In past cases when federal prosecutors have brought criminal charges against a representative, the Ethics Committee has deferred its inquiries at the Justice Departments request.

A spokesman for the Ethics Committee would not say whether it has received such a request regarding its work into Mr. Santos. The Justice Department did not respond to a request for comment.

Still, Mr. McCarthy on Tuesday said that he wanted the committee to move quickly. I think they could come back faster than a court case could, he said.

Mr. Santos, who has pleaded not guilty to all charges, is next expected to appear in federal court on Long Island on June 30. He has repeatedly insisted he had no plans to resign and last month announced his intent to run for re-election.

He said on Wednesday that he has been 100 percent compliant with the Ethics Committees investigation, but he has not appeared before them yet. As he spoke, Representative Jamaal Bowman, Democrat of New York, loudly heckled him, urging him to step down.

You gotta resign, bro, Mr. Bowman said, extending his thumb in a hit-the-road gesture. You gotta resign.

Catie Edmondson contributed reporting from Washington.

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House Republicans Stall Effort to Kick George Santos Out of Congress - The New York Times

NEW YORK, May 18 (Reuters) - CNN is getting more Republicans on the air as it seeks political diversity, the chief executive of parent company Warner Bros Discovery (WBD.O) said on Thursday, adding he and CNN chief Chris Licht have told Republicans theyre not going to get one more vote on Fox News.

Our view is there's advocacy networks on either side," Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav said at the SVB MoffettNathanson Technology, Media and Telecom Conference. "We have the best journalists in the world. We need to show both sides of every issue.

Advertisers dont want to be part of an advocacy network but they do want to be part of a news network, Zaslav said.

CNN has taken heat for its broadcast of a May 10 town hall with former Republican President Donald Trump. In a contentious 70-minute broadcast, Trump repeated falsehoods about his 2020 election loss, said that if elected he would pardon many supporters convicted of taking part in a Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, and called CNN moderator Kaitlan Collins a "nasty person."

On Wednesday CNN chief international anchor Christiane Amanpour publicly criticized the town hall in remarks at Columbia Journalism School, the first of the networks on-air talent to do so.

I still respectfully disagree with allowing Donald Trump to appear in that particular format, Amanpour said, according to the CNN Reliable Sources newsletter Wednesday night.

Suggesting that live TV may not always be the right format for such events, Amanpour said: Some of the very best and even most fiery, compelling interviews are, in fact, taped and they are edited, not to change the context or the content or the truth or the intent, but to edit for filibuster and a stream of disinformation, according to the CNN newsletter.

The Trump town hall attracted 3.3 million viewers, making CNN the most-watched cable news network that evening, according to Nielsen data.

Reporting by Helen Coster in New York; Editing by David Gregorio

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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CNN getting more Republicans on-air as it seeks political diversity - Reuters

House Republicans representing New York are taking aim at state Democrats and the Biden administration over the Empire States migrant surge -- as migrants have been housed in school gyms and as the Democratic leaders are also attempting to put pressure on Republicans over the crisis.

"It is absolutely unacceptable that Governor Kathy Hochul, Mayor Eric Adams, and President Joe Biden are sacrificing America's children's safety and happiness to prioritize the needs of illegals," Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-NY, told Fox News Digital. "This is why Republicans passed the strongest border security package in our nation's history."

New York City has been dealing with a massive migrant crisis for over a year as migrants have flooded into the city, including those who have been assisted with transports from Texas.

The issue hit the headlines again this week when it was revealed that the Big Apple has started housing migrants in public school gyms, sparking anger and protests. Mayor Eric Adams said the move was "drastic" but said the city is out of options. The city has also caused controversy by busing hundreds of migrants to Rockland County and Orange County.

NEW YORK GOV. HOCHUL: OFFICIALS TRYING TO FIND WELCOMING SITES FOR MIGRANTS IN NYC, SITUATION DESPERATE

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 15: US military personnel keep watch as asylum seekers are transferred via city bus from Port Authority bus terminal to housing facilities in the Bronx and Queens on May 15, 2023 in New York City. ((Photo by John Lamparski/Getty Images))

"We are carrying this entire burden. This national problem is being laid in the lap of New Yorkers," Adams told Fox 5 New York on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said in an interview with Spectrum News that the state is "helping [Adams] find places that will be welcoming."

"I want to make sure the Democrats, Republicans, everyone understands the challenges were facing right now," the governor added.

Hochul also addressed the Republican majority in Congress during the interview, asking them to pledge $1 billion to help the city as well as allowing illegal immigrants to work.

NYC FACES IRE OF RESIDENTS OVER PLAN TO HOUSE MIGRANTS IN BROOKLYN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL GYM

"Republicans in Congress, in charge of the House, have the ability to allocate more money. Why dont you match what New York state did? Give us a billion dollars for New York," she said. "Help us with the money, help us with the work authorization. And then well get through this much sooner."

It echoes calls from the Biden administration, who have accused Republicans of failing to provide funding for additional border measures -- while also calling on Congress to pass an immigration reform bill, which includes an amnesty for illegal immigrants already in the U.S.

"The fundamental reason why we have a challenge at our border, and weve had this challenge many a time before is because we are working within the constraints of a broken a fundamentally broken immigration system. And we also are operating on resources that are far less than those that we need and that weve requested," DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said last week

But Republicans have accused the Biden administration of fueling the crisis with its policies -- including the ending of Trump-era border measures and the reduction of interior enforcement. In New York, Republicans have attributed the crisis in part to "sanctuary" policies put into place at the city and state level.

BIDEN ADMIN, NY OFFICIALS SLAMMED AFTER HOMELESS VETERANS BOOTED FROM MIGRANT HOTELS: SLAP IN THE FACE

"The unmitigated disaster New York is now experiencing is a direct result of President Joe Bidens open border agenda and Governor Kathy Hochuls policies, which have made New York a magnet for illegal immigrants," Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-NY, told Fox in a statement. "It is outrageous that she now wants the American people to subsidize New Yorks failed sanctuary city policies. New York Citys "right-to-shelter" policy, in particular, was never intended to be applied in this context. Upstate New York counties that stand for the rule of law should not be forced to pay the price for those that have embraced dangerous and illegal sanctuary city policies.

"We are a compassionate nation, one with rules and laws that no one is above," Rep. Nick LaLota, R-NY, a member of the House Homeland Security Committee, said in a statement. "Those who entered the country illegally, or who are manipulating our asylum laws, should not displace law-abiding taxpayers from their government services. Veterans, the homeless, the mentally impaired, and other Americans in need deserve better."

Rep. Marc Molinaro, R-NY, called on Hochul to push President Biden to adopt "stronger border security measures" to address the cause of the crisis.

A person holds up a sign welcoming migrants at The Crossroads Hotel on Thursday, May 11, 2023 in Newburgh, New York. (The Image Direct for Fox News Digital)

"We are facing a crisis that impacts communities represented by Democrats and Republicans," he said. Our solution must be bipartisan. I urge Gov. Hochul to work with leaders at all levels of government and across party lines on this issue."

Meanwhile, there were also further signs of discord between Democrats on the issue. Mayor Eric Adams was asked Tuesday by a news anchor: "Where the heck is the president of the United States."

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

"Thats a good question," Adams said. "I think we all should be asking why this is happening to a city that was turning itself around and will continue to do so. This should not be happening to New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles and the other big northern cities."

"And really, it should not be happening to El Paso or Brownsville, Texas. No city should be carrying this burden. This is a national problem, and it needs a national solution," the mayor said.

Fox News Aubrie Spady, Jeffrey Clark, Danielle Wallace and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Link:
NY House Republicans blast Dems over states migrant crisis packing school gyms: 'Absolutely unacceptable' - Fox News

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Princeton sociologist and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Matthew Desmonds latest book, the New York Times best-seller Poverty, By America, explores why poverty is so prevalentand persistentin the richest nation on Earth. We spoke about his excellent book not long ago, but with the House Republicans demanding new work requirements for Medicaid and food-stamp recipients in exchange for raising the debt ceiling, I figured Desmond would have some thoughts.

Theres certainly little evidence that work requirements achieve their goalthat is, if the goal is to improve peoples lives. But this is a charitable view of Republican intent. If their goal is to push needy people off the rolls, then sure. And if the goal is to reduce the deficitand the debt-ceiling bill has a bunch of provisions that would do the oppositethere are ways to do it that dont target and scapegoat Americas most vulnerable. I reached out to Desmond to talk about these things and more. As always, ourchat has been edited for length and clarity.

What was your first thought when you heard the Republicans were seeking to impose new work requirements for food stamps and Medicaid?

That it doesnt have anything to do with work. When Arkansas imposed work requirements on Medicaid in 2018, I believe 18,000 people lost their health insurance and the state did not witness any growth in employment. Work requirements are not about work; theyre about a commitment by the modern Republican Party to harm the poor, really. Its hard to say it any other way. If were going to balance the budget and tackle the deficit, why is it always the poor who have to pay that price, especially given all the tax avoidance and shenanigans that we experience today?

As the public sees it, there are three questions. First, are work requirements reasonable? Second, whats the goal? And third, does the policy achieve the goal? To get food stamps now, so-called able-bodied adults under 50, without young children, have to spend 20 hours a week doing paid or unpaid work or work training. If you presented that to the average person on the street, they might say, That sounds pretty reasonable. But what does it look like for the people in need of aid?

So many of of the aid recipients are working already, and many are working in ways that arent recognized as work. One of the things that is completely baffling and frustrating to me is how we ignore the caretaking work of raising kids and also caring for the old, and render that work invisible with respect to these requirements.

I would love a public conversation about the incentives to work. You know, often these low-wage jobs are grueling and you have no power and your pay hasnt gone up in years. These conversations seem just out of touch with the everyday experiences of folks in jobs like that.

What do you know about these work training programs?

I havent studied them. I do think theres an idea among some policymakers that if we just had the right credentials, or right education, people could achieve some financial stability. I think the research is in on that: One-third of Americans who have a college degree earn less than the median income. In the United States, weve had incredible growth and educational attainment at the secondary and post-secondary levelsover the last 40 years, and yet poverty has really persisted. To me its not about credentialing or job training, its really about the imbalance of power in the labor market.

Work requirement policies are often sold as a way to push people to improve their lot and make themselves more self-sufficient. Do you think thats one of the actual goals?

No, because we have so many people working already that would be affected. I think the idea of work requirements rests on the image of a layabouta person who isnt working pulling a checkand that just isnt supported by the data. Brookings had a study [that looked at] how many people can be considered non-working poor, disconnected from the labor market for reasons we dont understand? They found it was like 3 percent of folks.

And so part of what this policy proposal does is continue this myth of poverty being connected to non-work, where today there are so many people working and still mired in poverty.

Matt Gaetz used the term couch potatoes to describe certain aid recipients. Its kind of like the welfare queens of the Reagan era.

Yeah, here we are, againsame old story.

I was just reading about how the term able-bodied, which we hear a lot in these debates, has quite a history.

Isnt it in the poor laws of England?

Yes, exactly. And it was rooted in the church and meant to carry moral weight. And its still around. I mean, you write about the dehumanizing aspects of poverty. Over the years, this kind of rhetoric has advanced certain cultural narratives about the poor. From your experience, how do you view those narratives?

When you talk to folks in violence reduction programs or reentry programs who have experienced hardship and are trying to make a change, its often really hard to connect them with jobs. Theres this idea that theres just a bunch of jobs out there that people who grew up in incredibly difficult circumstances could just step into if they wanted. And that seems really out of touch with the lived experience of poverty. The broader point my book is trying to make is that this moral division between the working and non-workingmakers and takers is the Republican phraseis not the moral line thats most salient to this debate. First, were all kind of takers, right? We all benefit from government programs in one way or another, even if we dont recognize it. But more importantly, I feel like the moral bright line should be between the exploiters and the exploitedor as Orwell put it, the robbers and the robbed.

I can only imagine work requirements are especially hard for people with a felony on their record.

Yeah, there is a lot of data on how a felony record, especially when it compounds with racial discrimination in the job market, can really be an impediment. I just wonder whether any of the folks pushing these policies have real relationships with constituents who are in povertyif they know them, if theyre in touch with their lives and their struggles. Because if they did, they couldnt in good faith be asking our poor families to pay the price of the debt-ceiling debates.

If we wanted to get serious about reducing the deficit, we could insist on tax fairness. What did the IRS chair say: Were losing $1 trillion a year in tax avoidance and evasion? And so this seems like such a distraction. If the deficit concern is driving it, there is a clear solution that is not being pursued. I think thats incredibly tellingand frankly, cruel.

Right. We dont ask able-bodied rich people to work in exchange for their tax breakswhich are far more generous than aid for the poor.

Thats much better than I could have put it. Its also, I feel like we dont devalue the importance of work when we make a claim that no one in America should fall below a certain level. Were talking about food and healthcare here! Medicaid and food stamps. There shouldnt be any qualifications to meeting basic necessities in this land of dollars.

Ive spent a lot of time in poor communities and this myth of the couch potatoIve not met that person. Ive spent time with folks who are on disability and out of the workforce. And Ive spent a ton of time with folks who are working like crazy but arent shown to be working on official documents because theyre working under the table. Theyre working for cash and working in places that dont take your Social Security number.

The Republican Party decries the bureaucratic state and how burdensome it is, and regulations and all thatbut work and training requirements create a huge bureaucracy that enriches private contractors while subjecting people who already have a lot on their plate to mountains of paperwork.

Thats right. And we see this in the data. If we had a country of welfare dependency, why do we see over $140 billion in unused aid left on the table every year by families that are disconnected from programs that they need and deserve? Why do most elderly Americans who qualify for food stamps pass on them, one in five workers who qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit not claim itthis isnt a picture of welfare dependency, this is a picture of bureaucracy and red tape and administrative burden. No one is asking me to get photographed and fingerprinted to take my mortgage-interest deduction.

Michael Harrington had this phrase in The Other America: socialism for the rich and free enterprise for the poor. I feel its like, the deregulation of the rich and regulation of the poor. These administrative burdens are pushed down on families that have the least resources.

Right. And I gather there is evidence that when you make a benefits process more onerous, people drop off the rolls. And perhaps thats the goal.

Yeah. A reasonable counter-explanation would be solid evidence that work requirements lead to increases in employment and do not result in people losing their benefits. But the way I read the evidence, work requirements lead to people losing their benefits and have a very mixed record on increasing employment.

The modern welfare state is tilted toward the employed. The work of Robert Moffitt, a great economist at Johns Hopkins, shows that our poorest families today get less than they did 30 years ago, but the families right around the poverty line and above it get a lot more because weve embraced this employment-based welfare state. But the way people talk, you would assume that we havent been undergoing this process for the past 30 years.

Another notable aspect of these programs is that theyre very paternalisticshaming, even. I mean, you cant use food stamps for certain itemsnot just tobacco and alcohol, but also toiletries and pet food and dietary supplements. Yet we dont tell well-to-do takers how to spend their money.

I remember listening to an interview where a conservative guest was saying, I dont want my tax dollars going into gambling and alcohol, or something like that. [Economist Thorstein] Veblen wrote about the forced continence of the poorthat often they just cant afford alcohol because of poverty. If you look at the data today, theres a lot more drinking with the upper classes than with poor folks. But again, no ones asking me if my tax breaks are used to buy alcohol or cigarettes or a trip to Vegas, right?

Correction: The study on the situations of people living in poverty came from Brookings, not the Urban Institute. The figure for impoverished people who werent working for reasons unknown was 3 percent, not 2 percent as originally stated.

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House Republicans' Work Requirements Are Not About Work ... - Mother Jones