'They produced a ransom note': Hakeem Jeffries blasts House GOP debt limit plan, wants real budget

If there was any sense the passage of a House Republican debt limit plan could move the needle on debt ceiling brinksmanship in Washington, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., reassured reporters Friday that President Joe Biden and congressional Democrats will not settle for anything less than a clean debt ceiling increase.

"We are still waiting for House Republicans to produce a budget. They produced a ransom note," Jeffries said in a press conference, dismissing the House GOP plan – which includes $4.5 trillion in spending cuts – as anything close to a budget.

The clock is ticking for Congress to raise the debt ceiling, as the U.S. is projected to run out of cash to pay its obligations sometime in early June.

Heightened pressure could soon mount on lawmakers and the White House to come to some sort of agreement, or else let the country default on its debts for the first time in history.

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Time is running low for Congress to raise the debt ceiling

House Republicans' debt ceiling plan is almost certain to be dead on arrival in the Senate and Biden has already promised to veto the bill should it reach his desk.

Some GOP leaders have speculated the legislation would improve House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's negotiating position.

But as the country nears early June, Republicans and Democrats still appear to be miles apart on how they should raise the debt ceiling. The House has 13 days in session before June 1 and the involved parties have plenty of other things on their calendar.

McCarthy is slated to lead a bipartisan congressional delegation in a visit to Israel next week while Biden is scheduled to visit Australia and Japan in May. It is unclear when Capitol Hill and the White House can make time to negotiate or reach an agreement.

'We are not a deadbeat nation': White House calls on GOP to raise debt limit after vote

What is the House Republican debt limit plan?

House Republicans passed their debt ceiling plan Wednesday, which tied $4.5 trillion in spending cuts to raise the ceiling until May 2024.

The plan rescinds increased funding for the Internal Revenue Service from the Inflation Reduction Act, guts Biden's student loan forgiveness plan and expands work requirements for individuals to receive food stamps.

The bill has been derided by most Democrats, who are following Biden's refusal to negotiate with House Republicans on tying budget cuts to the debt limit, instead calling for a clean debt ceiling increase. For their part, Biden and Democratic leaders have maintained they are willing to negotiate on the budget, separate from any debt limit discussions.

"We will have a conversation with House Republicans about the budget, about future spending priorities, about which type of investments should be made to continue to have a strong and robust American economy into the future. We are willing to have that conversation," Jeffries said.

Opinion: Biden needs to compromise on debt ceiling. Otherwise, we're all headed toward disaster.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: GOP debt limit plan is a ransom note, not a budget: Hakeem Jeffries