'Feel very good.' Biden projects optimism on debt deal as both sides whip up support

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WASHINGTON − President Joe Biden projected optimism Monday that Congress will back his agreement to raise the nation's debt ceiling as the White House worked behind the scenes to rustle up votes.

“I feel very good about it,” Biden told reporters outside the White House as he left Washington for Delaware, adding that he had spoken to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.

"I spoke to a whole bunch of people and it feels good," Biden said.

Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy struck a tentative agreement on Saturday to raise the debt ceiling until 2025 in exchange for a number of Republican demands to cut spending. As the text of that agreement became public late Sunday, both sides were spending the Memorial Day weekend selling the plan.

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The agreement faces an early test Tuesday in the House Rules Committee, which must approve the procedure for bringing the legislation to the floor. The administration has warned that Congress must raise the debt ceiling by June 5 or risk tripping the nation into the first default in its history.

When asked Monday what he would say to progressive Democrats who have reservations about the compromise, Biden said, "Talk to me.” He declined to go into further detail.

US President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the bipartisan budget agreement in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on May 28, 2023. US President Joe Biden and Republican leader Kevin McCarthy said they were confident on May 28, 2023 of pushing a debt crisis deal through Congress and avoiding a cataclysmic default, despite skepticism from some lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Biden projects debt deal optimism as White House, McCarthy count votes