WASHINGTON — House Republican leaders said they hope to push forward with a vote Wednesday to raise the debt limit after making a series of changes overnight to win over holdouts.
“We can vote as early as today on this,” Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., who controls the floor schedule, told reporters after a closed-door meeting of House Republicans Wednesday morning. “We want to get this done as soon as possible, but more importantly, we want President Biden to finally start getting engaged in this process.”
The vote is a major test for Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who can lose no more than four GOP votes in his narrow majority before the bill collapses, with Democrats expected to unify against it.
McCarthy contended with early skepticism from members in swing districts, who have slowly come on board, as well as holdouts who represent the Midwest and are worried about a reduction in ethanol funding and conservatives who want changes like tougher work requirements for recipients of safety net programs.
Even if it passes the House, Senate Democrats have said the bill is dead on arrival and the White House has said Biden would veto it.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com