President Joe Biden was planning to discuss the controversial budget deal just passed in an address to the nation on Friday night, ready to sign the deal averting the nation’s first-ever government default, which would have sent waves of shock across the United States and global economies.
The measure was approved late Thursday night after passing the House in another late session the night before.
After days of default threats, the debt limit and budget deal was hammered out by Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, giving Republicans some of their demands for spending cuts but respecting top Democratic priorities.
“No one gets everything they want in a negotiation, but make no mistake: This bipartisan agreement is a great win for our economy and the American people,” Biden said in a statement Thursday.
Biden’s speech on Friday, scheduled for 7 p.m. EDT, will be the Democratic president’s longest remark on compromise. He remained largely silent publicly during the negotiations, a move that frustrated some in his party but was intended to give the two sides space to reach an agreement.
Quick action was vital if Washington hoped to meet next Monday’s deadline, when the Treasury said the United States would begin to run out of cash to pay its bills.
The deal suspends the nation’s debt limit until 2025, after the next presidential election, and ensures the government can continue to borrow to pay off US debts already incurred.
Overall, the 99-page bill limits spending for the next two years and changes some policies, including imposing new work requirements on older Americans receiving food assistance and giving the green light to conduct natural gas from Appalachia that many Democrats oppose. Some environmental rules have been changed to help streamline infrastructure project approvals.
The legislation also bolsters defense and veterans funds, cuts new funds for Internal Revenue Service officers, and rejects Biden’s call to reverse Trump-era tax breaks on corporations and the wealthy to help cover the nation’s deficits. It imposes automatic 1% global cuts if Congress does not approve its annual spending bills.