Yellen Urges Congress to Raise or Suspend Debt Ceiling

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen urged House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to raise or suspend the debt ceiling as soon as possible on Wednesday, warning that inaction could lead to a historic default in October. “A delay that calls into question the federal government’s ability to meet all its obligations would likely cause irreparable damage to the U.S. economy and global financial markets,” Yellen said. The debt ceiling was suspended in 2019 until July 2021, and the Treasury has since taken “extraordinary measures” to raise funds without issuing new debt; Yellen said those measures will expire in October. While promising to explore multiple options to raise the debt ceiling, Pelosi said she would not include such legislation in Democrats' $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation bill. Thus, a debt ceiling bill could require the support of at least 10 Senate Republicans, at least 46 of whom have signed a pledge not to contribute to Democrats’ efforts to raise the cap.

Coverage was most prominent in center-rated outlets, particularly those focused on business and D.C. politics. Coverage of Yellen’s remarks came among several related stories on the negotiations surrounding Democrats’ budget reconciliation bill.