House leaders try to solve math problems on debt ceiling vote
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Congressional leaders are scrambling to ensure their caucuses are at full force when the House votes Wednesday on House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's (R-Calif.) debt ceiling bill.
Why it matters: Republicans have control of the House by a slim margin and multiple Republicans are signaling plans to defect.
- The House is expected to vote as early as Wednesday afternoon on the measure, which would raise the debt ceiling into 2024 while slashing government spending.
- Democrats are trying to maximize McCarthy's headaches as he wrangles his members.
By the numbers: Republicans have a nine-seat majority, meaning they can normally lose just four votes on a given party-line bill assuming all Democrats oppose it.
- But the margin McCarthy needs could shift if several lawmakers are absent.
- During votes on Tuesday, nine House Democrats and six Republicans were absent.
What we're hearing: Democratic leadership is cracking down on non-voters on their side and it expects multiple members who were absent to be in D.C. and voting on Wednesday, according to Democratic aides.
- One Democratic aide described the message to the party's members as: “McCarthy had a terrible day yesterday. The only way to force him to have another terrible day is to be here and voting.”
- At least three Democrats who were absent Tuesday — Reps. Deborah Ross (N.C.), Jason Crow (Colo.) and Eric Swalwell (Calif.) — are expected to vote Wednesday, according to their offices.
Between the lines: It's not clear whether any Democrats will vote for the measure, though it is expected to be opposed by the vast majority of the caucus.
- Several Democrats have called for the White House to enter into negotiations with McCarthy on raising the debt ceiling, but still said they strongly oppose the bill.
- The legislation includes new welfare work requirements, repealing portions of the Inflation Reduction Act and rescinding student loan debt forgiveness in addition to broader, across-the-board spending cuts.
Yes, but: Several Republicans who were absent, including Reps. Roger Williams (Texas) and Greg Murphy (N.C.), attended the GOP conference meeting at the Capitol on Wednesday morning.
What we're watching: It could all come down to a few Republicans who, as of early Wednesday, said they opposed the legislation.
- Reps. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.), Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) and several other Republicans emerged from the GOP conference meeting saying they still planned to vote "no" on the bill.
Juliegrace Brufke contributed reporting for this story.
