Congress pushes back threat of US default
Congress has agreed to temporarily raise the US debt ceiling until the end of the year (Illustrative image) AFP / Nicholas Kamm
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The US Congress agreed on Tuesday to temporarily raise the US debt ceiling until the end of the year, providing respite for the world's largest economy before another fierce political battle to avoid default of payment.
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Thanks to the sole support of elected Democrats (219 votes against 206, all Republican), the House of Representatives adopted a measure which plans to raise the debt limit of the United States by 480 billion dollars.
Already approved by the Senate last week, this text will be sent immediately to Joe Biden, who will promulgate it as soon as possible according to the White House.
This will allow the country to honor its payments until December, or even at the very beginning of 2022, removing the prospect of a default with catastrophic consequences for the mega-power and the rest of the world.
If this measure had not been adopted, the country could have found itself in bankruptcy as of October 18, had warned the Treasury.
Its adoption was the subject of an intense standoff in the Senate, which finally approved this temporary solution last Thursday thanks to the very narrow Democratic majority.
Arm wrestling
"
We cannot allow partisan politics to hold our economy hostage, and we cannot allow the routine of paying our bills to turn into a political showdown, undermining confidence, every two years or every two months.
" , had stormed the spokeswoman of the White House Jen Psaki
in the face of the opposition of the Republicans
.
They refuse to approve any long-term measure to raise the debt ceiling, because they claim that this would amount to giving Joe Biden a blank check to finance his vast investment plans.
These plans have yet to be passed by Congress, however, so raising the debt limit serves to repay sums already borrowed, including trillions of dollars spent under the Trump presidency.
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To read also: United States: Congress finds a short-term agreement to avoid a default
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell is now urging Democrats to reach - alone - a lasting solution by December through a complex legislative path.
But President Joe Biden's camp has so far refused to use this "
too risky
"
maneuver
for the debt.
The text approved on Tuesday therefore only postpones until the end of November a parliamentary battle that promises to be epic over the finances of the United States.
(with AFP)
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