Punchbowl News: “The White House’s theory is this: this debt was racked up under former President Donald Trump, and Democrats are not going to let Republicans just hang it around their necks. Some in the White House seem to think 10 Senate Republicans will budge and vote for the debt limit if it’s twinned with a government funding bill next month.”
“Democrats are playing the same hand they did in 2011 — saying the debt limit is a joint responsibility that both parties own equally. But the politics are different this time. Republicans are in the minority in the House and Senate, and the Republican Party is a much different party than it was a decade ago. The Tea Party looks tame compared to what happened under Trump. Plus, after the aforementioned bipartisan victories (see above), McConnell’s GOP allies seem to think he has incentive to hold his party against the debt limit and let the Democrats figure it out on their own.”
“To the White House and some Democrats, slapping it onto reconciliation was a political loser. The administration feared that adding the debt limit in reconciliation would’ve spooked House Democratic moderates and given them a reason to vote against the upcoming budget resolution.”
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