Welfare Work Requirements Emerge As Central Issue In Debt Limit Fight

Topline

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said stricter work requirements for welfare recipients are a non-negotiable condition for raising the debt limit Tuesday, days after President Joe Biden expressed openness to the idea—representing one area of potential agreement as the ongoing talks between the White House and congressional leaders appear to be making small steps forward.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, of Calif., listens during a news conference in the Rayburn Room at the … [+] Capitol Building in Washington, Thursday, May 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Nathan Howard)

Associated Press

Key Facts

The GOP-led House passed legislation last month that would require recipients of food stamps and Medicaid to work or perform community service for roughly 20 hours a week until they are 55—up from 49—a provision that would affect nearly 275,000 food stamp recipients who do not currently meet the work requirements or have an exemption, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

McCarthy answered “yes,” on Tuesday when asked by reporters if the welfare work requirements were a “red line” for Republicans in the debt ceiling negotiations, adding: “remember what we’re talking about: able-bodied adults with no dependents . . . it’s 20 hours.”

Biden over the weekend noted his previous support for welfare reform as a senator when asked about the GOP proposal, telling reporters, “I voted for tougher aid programs that’s in the law now, but [raising the work requirement age]

Biden clarified his stance Monday in a tweet highlighting the risks the provision poses to Medicaid recipients: “Rather than push Americans into poverty, we should reduce the deficit by making sure the wealthy and large corporations pay their fair share in taxes.”

McCarthy’s comments come as Biden is set to meet with him and congressional leaders for the second time in the span of a week to discuss the looming debt ceiling crisis—negotiations that Biden said appear to be making some progress after months of impasse.

Caps on federal spending, rescinding unspent Covid-19 funding and loosening permitting requirements for new energy projects are also reportedly on the table, though the Biden Administration is demanding House Republicans nix their proposals to eliminate key White House policies, such as Biden’s student loan forgiveness program, in exchange, according to Politico.

Surprising Fact

Biden was one of 24 Democratic senators who voted for the Clinton-era welfare reforms, Politico noted, quoting a speech he made on the Senate floor at the time, saying, “the culture of welfare must be replaced with the culture of work.” As president, Biden signed legislation in 2021 that watered down some of those reforms, including offering additional support, without conditions, for impoverished parents. The program was part of the American Rescue Plan aimed at Covid-19 recovery.

Chief Critic

Biden’s apparent openness to negotiate has raised alarms among Democratic lawmakers who fear the president is reversing course on his previous stance that he would not agree to any debt-ceiling bill tied to other conditions. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) is “very concerned about any efforts to just tangle aid recipients in red tape,” she told Politico. Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) warned the welfare work requirements and energy permitting reforms, specifically, could prompt “backlash at the polling booth,” she told Axios, while Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) predicted “pushback on nearly any significant concession.” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) also told members of the Democratic caucus during a meeting Monday that “work requirements are a nonstarter,” his spokesperson told The Hill.

Contra

Though Biden said Sunday he was optimistic about the progress of the debt ceiling talks, telling reporters “there’s a desire” on both sides “to reach an agreement,” McCarthy expressed a more pessimistic view Monday. “We have no agreements on anything,” he told reporters, adding, “it seems more like [Democrats] want a default than a deal.”

What To Watch For

Democrats are reportedly weighing several options for pushing a clean debt-ceiling bill through the House, including long-shot proposals to invoke an obscure clause in the Fourteenth Amendment or a discharge petition that would allow them to bypass House leadership and committees to bring the legislation to the floor, Axios reported. Biden said last week the White House is “considering” invoking the Civil War-era Fourteenth Amendment, which states “the validity of the public debt . . . shall not be questioned,” though he acknowledged the move would likely face a lengthy legal challenge.

Key Background

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen reiterated her estimate Monday that the federal government could run out of cash and be unable to pay its bills as soon as June 1, unless Congress agrees to raise the $31.4 trillion borrowing limit. The two parties face a time crunch after months of impasse surrounding the terms for raising the debt limit. Biden has repeatedly said he will not agree to any policy or spending changes as a condition for raising the federal borrowing threshold and has instead urged Congress to negotiate their priorities through the fiscal year 2024 budget process. House Republicans, meanwhile, have said they will not agree to any debt ceiling bill that does not include a long list of demands included in legislation the House passed last month, which would raise the borrowing limit by $1.5 trillion through March of next year. The legislation aims to balance the federal budget over the next 10 years by capping federal spending at fiscal year 2022 levels, which would require an estimated $4.5 trillion in cuts. The Democratic-controlled Senate has said it will refuse to pass the legislation in its current form, however, and Biden threatened to veto the bill in the rare chance it reaches his desk.