US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has moved the date for a possible default to June 5 in the event of a failure to agree between Democrats and Republicans on the debt ceiling. In a letter sent to parliamentarians, Yellen indicated June 5 – until now it was June 1 – the date on which the United States will no longer have the money to honor its financial commitments. The new projections provide Congress with an indication of time while negotiations continue to reach an agreement, which today was given closer.
“We made progress last night, we need to make more progress now,” Republican leader Kevin McCarthy said, speaking to reporters in Congress and stressing that his goal is to “change the trajectory” of government spending so as to reduce the national debt. When asked if he then believes that an agreement can be reached today, the Republican speaker replied by saying that he intends to “work to the max” but that any agreement must “be worthy of the American people”.
For McCarthy the negotiations have reached only one crucial point: “Everything depends on spending”, he repeats, criticizing the Democrats who want to continue to borrow money from other countries and oppose the obligation to work in order to benefit from assistance programs social.
In the meantime, the US receives a harsh rebuke from the director of the International Monetary Fund, who denounces the umpteenth postponement of an agreement on the debt ceiling between Republicans and Democrats. Kristalina Georgieva borrows the Cinderella fairy tale to underline the urgency of an agreement, with last-minute negotiations jeopardizing global financial stability.
“We’ve all read the story of Cinderella who has to leave the ball at exactly midnight. And we’re at this point – Georgieva tells reporters in Washington – So, before our carriage turns into a pumpkin, could we solve this problem? Don’t you it’s just about the loss of a slipper.”
