House

Mace: Biden should cancel Asia trip to focus on debt ceiling negotiations

by Julia Shapero - 05/16/23 10:47 AM ET

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) said Tuesday that President Biden should cancel his upcoming trip to Asia to focus on debt ceiling negotiations, as the default deadline looms just weeks away.

“I think it’s deeply problematic, given the trajectory that we’re on right now and how close we are to June 1 deadline, that the president is traveling out of country,” Mace said in an interview with “CNN This Morning.”

“He should be here on the Hill, working with Republicans and Democrats to strike some sort of a compromise,” she continued. “Because guess what? Both parties, Republicans and Democrats, got us into this mess, and both sides need to come together and show the American people how they’re going to get us out of it.”

Biden is set to meet with Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and other congressional leaders Tuesday afternoon to discuss the debt ceiling, after Treasury Department Secretary Janet Yellen warned lawmakers again Monday that the country could default as soon as June 1.

More coverage of the debt ceiling from The Hill:

“Time is running out. Every single day that Congress does not act, we are experiencing increased economic costs that could slow down the U.S. economy,” Yellen said in remarks to the Independent Community Bankers of America.

However, Biden and McCarthy still appear far from reaching a deal, even as the president is set to leave Wednesday for a seven-day trip to Japan, Papua New Guinea and Australia.

“Leaving the country right now is not where he should be,” Mace said. “He should be here, and they should be working something out to balance the budget, rein in spending over the next 10-20 years, something reasonable that both sides can agree to.”

House Republicans have pushed to tie a debt limit increase to spending cuts, while Biden has remained steadfast in his demand for a “clean” increase of the debt ceiling.