Obama will meet with Reid and McConnell on debt talks next week
The top two leaders of the Senate will head to the White House on Monday to consult with President Obama on deficit reduction talks, the White House said Friday.
Congress is racing to meet an Aug. 2 deadline to forge a budget agreement that would allow a vote on raising the nation’s $14.3-trillion debt limit. Failure to do so risks a catastrophic federal default.
The White House said Friday that Obama would be meeting with Sens. Harry Reid (D-Nev.), the majority leader, and Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the top Republican, in separate meetings.
The talks come after the GOP pulled out of debt negotiations this week over opposition to using new revenue to help restrain deficits. Republicans want only spending cuts.
House Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s withdrawal from talks led by Vice President Joe Biden came with a call from Republicans across the board for the president to step up his involvement.
“It is my hope that the president requested this meeting in order to finally explain what it is that he’s prepared to do to solve our nation’s fiscal crisis,” McConnell said in a statement after the White House announcement. “The president needs to decide between his goal of massive tax hikes, and a bipartisan plan to address our deficit. But he can’t have both.”
Biden will also participate in next week’s meetings.
Michael A. Memoli contributed to this report.
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