Yellen: Debt limit about bill-paying

The US has reached its debt ceiling on Jan. 19 forcing the Treasury Department to start taking measures to keep the government paying its bills and escalating pressure on Capitol Hill to avoid a default. The battle lines have been set. Hardline Republicans are demanding that lifting the borrowing cap be tied to non-defense spending cuts. The White House said it will not make concessions or negotiation since the solution is with Legislative branch of government. The partisan fight may result in the nation defaulting for the first time ever. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen wrote House Speaker Kevin McCarthy informing him that the nation's outstanding debt is at its statutory limit of $31.4T and that DoT would implement measures not to default. She said the measures would last through June 5. This buys Congress time, but it hasn't sparked any discussion. Instead, both parties have firmed their rigid positions. (The AP 01/19/23) US hits debt ceiling, prompting Treasury to take extraordinary measures | News | wtva.com 

UPDATE 01/20/23 - The AP

DAKAR, Senegal - Treasury Secretary Yellen said Jan. 21, while in Africa, she expects Congress will eventually vote to raise America's debt limit, but House GOP reps want non-defense spending cuts for their backing of raising the debt limit. President Joe Biden has called for a "clean increase" - not linked to cuts. On Jan. 19, the U.S. bumped up against the $31.381T debt cap, forcing Treasury to take "extraordinary" accounting steps, which means the government should be able to operate until some point in June. "Congress needs to understand," she said, about paying bills that have already been incurred by congressional decisions. "(I)t's not about new spending," Yellen said, which "can't be negotiated" on whether to pay the bills.