WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 31st May, 2023) US Senator Rand Paul said on Tuesday that he is offering a conservative alternative to a tentative deal between President Joe Biden and House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy, which would raise the United States' debt ceiling in exchange for limited spending reforms.
"Today, I announced the conservative alternative to the Biden-McCarthy debt deal. Bold actions must be taken to defeat our mounting national debt, and my conservative alternative gives us a real opportunity to get our fiscal house in order," Paul said in a statement via Twitter.
Over the weekend, Biden and McCarthy struck a tentative deal, dubbed the "Fiscal Responsibility Act," which raises the debt ceiling for two years in exchange for limited cuts to government spending.
The alternative plan will be offered as an amendment to the Biden-McCarthy deal, Paul's office said in a statement. The amendment would replace existing language with "responsible reforms and necessary cuts," the statement said.
The amendment would replace a two-year blanket suspension of the debt ceiling with a $500 billion increase, the statement said. The amendment also replaces caps on discretionary spending with caps on total spending that cuts five percent each year, the statement said.
The amendment also creates a mandate that growth in Federal outlays may not exceed growth in revenue from the previous fiscal year, the statement added.
Earlier this month, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned that the US government could default on its financial obligations as early as June 5 if leaders fail to raise the debt ceiling.
The Biden-McCarthy plan must pass the House of Representatives, where it faces opposition by members of the Freedom Caucus, as well as the Senate, which will weigh Paul's alternative. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said on Tuesday that he supports the Biden-McCarthy plan, calling on senators to act urgently to send a final product to Biden before the deadline.
