“A partial government shutdown is not good, but a partial government default of our credit would send shock waves through the financial markets throughout the world,” Shelby said. “The secretary of the Treasury is right, we ought to deal with both of those items soon.“
Representative Raul Grijalva, an Arizona Democrat and chairman emeritus of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said liberal Democrats should insist on more domestic spending in the debt ceiling deal.
“We need to take a stand and this is it,” Grijalva said. “It says we are prepared to help people in this country, including people in poverty.”
Grijalva said he understands there are differences among House Democrats but the party’s most moderate members should not be setting the tone in talks.
“I understand pragmatism,” he said. “But we need pragmatism with passion.”
Representative Derek Kilmer of Washington state, who chairs the moderate New Democrat Coalition, said the party is “far more unified” than it appears, especially when it comes to avoiding any risk of a default.
June Infighting
This week will be the first time House Democrats meet as a party since infighting burst into public last month over an emergency border spending measure. Pelosi was forced to accept a bipartisan Senate bill after her own moderates threatened to oppose a rival House version with greater protections for child migrants.
That decision, and Pelosi’s subsequent explanation of it, stoked a public war of words between the speaker and liberal firebrands like New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
While progressives like Kildee complained that moderates gave up too early on border funding, Representative Stephanie Murphy of Florida said passing the bill that the Senate approved 84-8 was one of the most significant bipartisan achievements of this Congress.