Congressional Democrats will offer Republican lawmakers and President Donald Trump their votes for a package delivering aid to victims of Hurricane Harvey and raising the debt ceiling until mid-December.
The offer for a short-term debt limit increase, outlined in a joint statement by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, is intended to preserve their leverage later this year on other issues. GOP leaders had hoped for a longer debt limit boost.
“Given Republican difficulty in finding the votes for their plan, we believe this proposal offers a bipartisan path forward to ensure prompt delivery of Harvey aid as well as avoiding a default, while both sides work together to address government funding, DREAMers, and health care,” Schumer and Pelosi said in a joint statement.