debt ceiling

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., is working to convince members of his own party to support a stop-gap spending bill while also defending his job as speaker.

Politics & Government

McCarthy's plans for impeachment don't appear to be tamping down shutdown threat

3:22pm September 13, 2023

A group of hard-line House Republicans say House Speaker Kevin McCarthy cannot win their support on spending by launching an impeachment inquiry into President Biden.

Fitch downgraded the U.S sovereign rating. The markets took the decision largely on their stride — but that doesn't make the decision inconsequential.

Economy

Fitch just downgraded the U.S. credit rating — how much does it matter?

5:33pm August 02, 2023

by Rafael Nam

The U.S. is no longer rated at the top-notch AAA by Fitch. Here's what credit ratings are, and why they (mostly) matter.

President Biden gives an address on the bipartisan deal to avert a national default.

Politics & Government

Biden hails bipartisan deal to avert debt default in a rare Oval Office address

8:08pm June 02, 2023

by Franco Ordoñez

The president outlined the economic stakes that leaders faced and declared that a crisis had been averted.

Former President Eisenhower, addresses the nation on the American intervention in Formosa (now Taiwan) in an undated archival picture. Eisenhower was involved in the country's first debt ceiling fight when he asked Congress to raise the limit by $15 billion. The Senate refused, ushering the first tussle over the country's debt.

The first debt ceiling fight was in 1953. It looked almost exactly like the one today

4:08pm June 01, 2023

by Stacey Vanek Smith

Debt ceiling dramas have been going on a long time. The first one happened exactly 70 years ago. President Eisenhower asked Congress for an extra $15 billion and the Senate said, "No dice."

Deputy Director of the National Economic Council Bharat Ramamurti, pictured at a White House briefing last August, spoke to Morning Edition after the House passed its debt ceiling bill.

'This is a compromise': How the White House is defending the debt ceiling bill

9:55am June 01, 2023

by Rachel Treisman

The House's debt ceiling bill has critics on both sides. Bharat Ramamurti, the deputy director of the National Economic Council, says the administration was able to secure some of its key priorities.

Queue Listen Now

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy speaks to members of the media at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on May 24, 2023. The House is set to vote on a debt deal on Wednesday.

CBO says debt ceiling deal would cut deficits by $1.5 trillion over the next decade

11:55am May 31, 2023

by Scott Horsley

Congressional forecasters say the debt ceiling deal struck by President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy over the weekend would reduce deficits by about $1.5 trillion over the next decade.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen listens during an open session of the Financial Stability Oversight Council meeting at the Department of the Treasury in Washington, D.C., on April 21, 2023. Yellen said on Friday Congress would need to raise the debt ceiling by June 5 or the country could run out of cash to pay its bills.

Yellen sets new deadline for Congress to raise the debt ceiling: June 5

5:49pm May 26, 2023

by Scott Horsley

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says unless lawmakers raise the debt ceiling by June 5, the government won't have enough money to pay all of its bills.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy speaks to members of the media at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on May 24, 2023. The U.S. government will soon run out of cash to pay its bills unless it can raise or suspend its debt ceiling.

5 things people get wrong about the debt ceiling saga

10:55am May 25, 2023

by Scott Horsley

Did spending by President Biden and the Democrats rack up the country's debt? Is a default the same as a government shutdown? Here are answers to things people often get wrong about the debt ceiling.

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Preschool teacher Jaqueline Benitez depends on California's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to help pay for food. If the debt ceiling isn't raised, SNAP and other federal payments would be delayed. (AP Photo/Allison Dinner)

Economy

3 ways to protect your money if the U.S. defaults on its debt

5:04am May 25, 2023

by Arezou Rezvani

From social security payments to interest rates, a lot hinges on a debt-ceiling deal. Personal finance experts say you should prepare for a possible debt default as you would a recession.

FILE - Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., criticizes President Joe Biden's policies and efforts on the debt limit negotiations as he holds a news conference at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, May 17, 2023.

Slim majority wants debt ceiling raised without spending cuts, poll finds

12:00pm May 23, 2023

by Domenico Montanaro

Joe Biden and Republicans in Congress cannot agree on a path forward to avoid debt default even though Americans want to raise the debt ceiling without cutting spending, according to a new NPR poll.