U.S. President Joe Biden and top congressional Republican Kevin McCarthy reached a tentative deal to raise the federal government's $31.4 trillion debt ceiling on Saturday evening, ending a monthslong stalemate.
However, the deal was announced without any celebration, in terms that reflected the bitter tenor of the negotiations and the difficult path it has to pass through Congress before the United States runs out of money to pay its debts in early June.
"I just got off the phone with the president a bit ago. After he wasted time and refused to negotiate for months, we've come to an agreement in principle that is worthy of the American people," McCarthy tweeted.
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