Senate Democrats are setting up a showdown with Republicans over the debt limit

Senate Democrats on Monday released the framework for their $3.5 trillion budget resolution, which they'll aim to pass without Republican support via reconciliation. The framework addresses numerous issues, including, but not limited to, climate change, jobs programs, and universal child care. However, it does not include instructions to raise or extend the debt ceiling.
This was mostly expected thanks to recent reporting and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen's call for Congress to take of the debt limit, which had been suspended for the last two years, through bipartisan legislation. By omitting it from the budget resolution, Democrats appear prepared for a fiscal showdown with Republicans, who wanted their colleagues to include the debt limit in the reconciliation bill so they wouldn't have to deal with it. Theoretically, the move puts the GOP in a tough spot because they're not keen on voting to raise or extend the limit, but Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) also likely doesn't want his party heading into the 2022 midterms having sent a message that they want to cut Social Security and Medicare, former Obama administration aide Dan Pfeiffer writes.
But Pfeiffer doesn't believe the showdown is only a risk for Republicans. In fact, he argues Democrats made a mistake by not including a significant debt ceiling raise in reconciliation. "It is essentially solving a small problem by creating a much bigger one," he writes, explaining that it could set up a fight not only with McConnell, but also with House Republicans, who may cause Democrats even more trouble.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
How the woke right gained power in the US
Under the radar The term has grown in prominence since Donald Trump returned to the White House
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK
-
Codeword: April 24, 2025
The Week's daily codeword puzzle
By The Week Staff
-
Crossword: April 24, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff
-
Musk vows DOGE pullback as Tesla profits plunge
Speed Read The Tesla SEO says he will soon step back from government matters to devote more time to the company
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
IMF sees slump from tariffs, Trump tries to calm markets
Speed Read The International Monetary Fund predicts the U.S. and global economies will slow significantly due to the president's trade war
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
DHS chief Kristi Noem's purse stolen from eatery
Speed Read Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem's purse was stolen while she dined with family at a restaurant in Washington, D.C.
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Trump stands by Hegseth amid ouster reports
Speed Read The president dismissed reports that he was on the verge of firing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over a second national security breach
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Hegseth reportedly shared war plans in 2nd group text
Speed Read The defense secretary sent information about an attack in Yemen to a Signal group chat that included his wife and brother
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Judge threatens Trump team with criminal contempt
Speed Read James Boasberg attempts to hold the White House accountable for disregarding court orders over El Salvador deportation flights
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Biden slams Trump's Social Security cuts
Speed Read In his first major public address since leaving office, Biden criticized the Trump administration's 'damage' and 'destruction'
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
El Salvador refuses to return US deportee
Speed Read President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador said he would not send back the unlawfully deported Kilmar Ábrego García
By Peter Weber, The Week US