White House denies McCarthy budget negotiation request: 'Stop playing games'

The White House rejected House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's (R-CA) entreaties for President Joe Biden to meet with him to discuss raising the debt ceiling before the country defaults on its loans this summer.

Members of Congress have a constitutional obligation to lift the debt limit "as they did three times in the previous administration without conditions," according to press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

"Business leaders and economists have warned that the threat of a default risks the livelihoods of American small businesses, retirees, and working families and would hand a massive win to China — and recent events underscore the...