Live blog: Wrangling over debt limit amid government shutdown
After more than a week of relative inaction, House Republicans have readied a proposal to temporarily extend the imminent debt ceiling, which they will bring to the table later today during a meeting at the White House with President Obama.
House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) said he would support a six-week extension of the debt limit to remove the issue from the table while Republicans and Democrats try to resolve the government shutdown.
Though the White House has repeatedly stated its preference for legislation that both reopens the government and raises the debt limit, Press Secretary Jay Carney said that the proposal was at least a step forward.
“The president is happy that cooler heads at least seem to be prevailing in the House, that there at least seems to be a recognition that default is not an option,” he told reporters.
But whether conservative Republicans, who have proved to be highly influential in the House, will also throw their support behind Boehner’s plan is unknown. Boehner made no mention of Obamacare in his remarks this morning, and the right wing of the party has already come down hard on Rep. Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) for his Obamacare-less overture to Democrats.
Follow our live blog below for the latest developments on debt-limit negotiations and the continuing government shutdown.
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