CNN
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House Speaker Kevin McCarthy told his leadership team that he wants to release bill text Wednesday detailing his party’s plan to raise the national debt limit for one year and is pushing for a floor vote next week, according to three sources familiar with the matter, a move that will set off a furious effort to limit GOP defections in the high-stakes fight with the White House.
McCarthy’s proposal will include raising the debt ceiling by $1.5 trillion or until March 31 of next year, whichever comes first, according to sources. The plan to kick the fight into 2024 would set up a high-stakes battle over the debt limit in the middle of an election year.
McCarthy and his team have spent the last several weeks trying to assemble a Republican package of spending cuts and budget savings to pair with the debt limit increase – and the speaker confidently told CNN that “yes” that he will have the votes to pass the package next week.
But he needs to include enough sweeteners to woo skeptical conservative hardliners without alienating his moderate members and swing-district Republicans, limiting defections to no more than four Republicans.
The move sets off the biggest test of McCarthy’s young speakership as the White House has insisted that the borrowing limit be raised without any conditions, a position that the House GOP has steadfastly rejected as Washington stares at the prospect of the first-ever US debt default as early as this summer.
A source close to the process told CNN that leadership is planning as of now to include a repeal of several parts of the Inflation Reduction Act in their plan, including repeals of green energy tax credits and funding to hire more IRS employees. Conservatives had been frustrated that the measure on IRS funding was not included.
