Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said Tuesday that Republicans are shooting for a vote to raise the debt ceiling before the start of the shortened August recess.
“Ideally, we would deal with debt ceiling before the August recess,” he told reporters.
When asked if spending cuts would be part of any bill to allow the government to take on more debt, McConnell was noncommittal.
“We’ll see, but the debt ceiling must be raised,” he said.
McConnell delayed the start of the August break until the third week of August, after Republicans pressured him for weeks for a longer work period that could help advance key Republican agenda items. That includes work on a healthcare bill and possibly tax reform.
The Trump administration’s Treasury Department has said the debt ceiling, now just short of $20 trillion, needs to be raised by the fall to avoid a funding shortfall for the government at current spending levels.
