Pelosi calls raising the debt ceiling a bipartisan responsibility

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) issued a "dear colleague" statement Sunday evening, calling on Congress to act in a bipartisan manner to raise the nation's debt ceiling.

Why it matters: Congress is fast approaching an October deadline to raise the nation's debt ceiling and avoid a government shutdown. But the issue has become a thorny partisan stand-off.

The big picture: Republican lawmakers insist they won't vote for a bill to raise the debt ceiling, arguing Democrats have the tools to deal with the deficit on their own since they control the White House and Congress.

• "The debt limit is a shared responsibility, and I urge Congress to come together, in that spirit, on a bipartisan basis as it has in the past to protect the full faith and credit of the United States," Pelosi said.