A bill to cut the US deficit was to face a nail-bitingly close vote in Congress yesterday as the top Republican lawmaker sought to quell an internal revolt and push his plan to avoid a ruinous default.
Approval of a plan by House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner would break the inertia in Washington over a US debt crisis that has spooked markets and raised the prospect that the government of the world’s largest economy will run out of money to pay its bills in less than a week.
US President Barack Obama has threatened to veto the bill and a majority of the Democratic-controlled Senate has vowed to vote against it, but a successful vote in the House would give the bill legitimacy and make it a crucial element of the legislative chess game that is likely to play out until Tuesday’s deadline.
A defeat of the bill could deepen the crisis, swinging the momentum toward a rival Democratic plan in the Senate, but leaving no clear way to overcome entrenched opposition from fiscally conservative “Tea Party” Republicans in the House.
With brinksmanship over the ideologically charged dispute seeming likely to go on through the weekend, investors and ordinary Americans are increasingly nervous that a previously unthinkable US default could spark a new financial crisis.
The US Treasury says it will run out of spending money on Tuesday unless Congress agrees to raise the US$14.3 trillion debt ceiling. Even if an 11th-hour compromise emerges, the US could lose its top-notch credit status if ratings agencies are not convinced it has done enough to address its bulging debt burden.
Several House Democrats planned to hold a news conference yesterday to urge Obama to take that option if necessary.
“The only option here is for Congress to do its job,” senior White House adviser David Plouffe said on the PBS show NewsHour. “We’ve run out of excuses and we’re running out of time.”
NO HUMAN ERROR: After the incident, the Coast Guard Administration said it would obtain uncrewed aerial vehicles and vessels to boost its detection capacity Authorities would improve border control to prevent unlawful entry into Taiwan’s waters and safeguard national security, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday after a Chinese man reached the nation’s coast on an inflatable boat, saying he “defected to freedom.” The man was found on a rubber boat when he was about to set foot on Taiwan at the estuary of Houkeng River (後坑溪) near Taiping Borough (太平) in New Taipei City’s Linkou District (林口), authorities said. The Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) northern branch said it received a report at 6:30am yesterday morning from the New Taipei City Fire Department about a
IN BEIJING’S FAVOR: A China Coast Guard spokesperson said that the Chinese maritime police would continue to carry out law enforcement activities in waters it claims The Philippines withdrew its coast guard vessel from a South China Sea shoal that has recently been at the center of tensions with Beijing. BRP Teresa Magbanua “was compelled to return to port” from Sabina Shoal (Xianbin Shoal, 仙濱暗沙) due to bad weather, depleted supplies and the need to evacuate personnel requiring medical care, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesman Jay Tarriela said yesterday in a post on X. The Philippine vessel “will be in tiptop shape to resume her mission” after it has been resupplied and repaired, Philippine Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, who heads the nation’s maritime council, said
REGIONAL STABILITY: Taipei thanked the Biden administration for authorizing its 16th sale of military goods and services to uphold Taiwan’s defense and safety The US Department of State has approved the sale of US$228 million of military goods and services to Taiwan, the US Department of Defense said on Monday. The state department “made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale” to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the US for “return, repair and reshipment of spare parts and related equipment,” the defense department’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a news release. Taiwan had requested the purchase of items and services which include the “return, repair and reshipment of classified and unclassified spare parts for aircraft and related equipment; US Government
More than 500 people on Saturday marched in New York in support of Taiwan’s entry to the UN, significantly more people than previous years. The march, coinciding with the ongoing 79th session of the UN General Assembly, comes close on the heels of growing international discourse regarding the meaning of UN Resolution 2758. Resolution 2758, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971, recognizes the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the “only lawful representative of China.” It resulted in the Republic of China (ROC) losing its seat at the UN to the PRC. Taiwan has since been excluded from