The ongoing debate over the debt ceiling — which if Congress keeps raising it, it’s not really a “ceiling,” merely an impediment — is coming down to a ‘Who do you believe’ argument between the Freedom Caucus and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.).
While everyone was observing Memorial Day weekend, McCarthy joined Fox News’ Shannon Bream on Sunday to talk about the prospective “bi-partisan” deal being bandied about. McCarthy sees the latest iteration of the deal as a win for Republicans.
“There is so much in this that is positive, and measure it to all the other debt ceilings,” McCarthy said. “When Republicans had the presidency, the Senate and the House, did they ever cut spending? No, they increased it.”
But wasn’t McCarthy part of that Congress that had that majority? Sure, he wasn’t the Speaker. But McCarthy saying “they” as if he wasn’t a part of it seems a bit disingenuous.
While the deal presented does raise the debt ceiling, it also does decrease the amount being spent. That’s when McCarthy sent the quiet part out loud.
“This is really a step in the right direction,” McCarthy told Bream. “It puts us a trajectory that’s different. We put a statutory cap on only spending one percent for the next six years. So we let government grow, but at a slower rate.”
If you ask the Freedom Caucus, that’s not good enough, especially when trying to shrink the size of government.
Freedom Caucus member Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) tweeted out a graphic that displayed the negatives to the proposed deal, including an uncapped debt limit after —at best — a two-year freeze in spending.
Why I will oppose the #DebtCeiling “deal.” It’s not a good deal. Some $4 Trillion in debt for - at best - a two year spending freeze and no serious substantive policy reforms. #NoDeal pic.twitter.com/C73fjSA2Fr
— Chip Roy (@chiproytx) May 29, 2023
McCarthy isn’t lacking in confidence, however, concerning the Freedom Caucus’ objection to the proposed deal. He told Bream that the majority of Republicans are on board with the proposal.
“More than 95 percent of all those in the conference were very excited,” McCarthy said before immediately pivoting to his talking points.
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Shalanda Young dodges question over whether the debt ceiling deal will reduce inflation. pic.twitter.com/ScMDld0blZ
— MRCTV (@mrctv) May 30, 2023