![MSNBC's Joe Scarborough worried Wednesday whether Democrats refusal to negotiate with Republicans on raising the debt ceiling could backfire. [Screenshot Morning Joe]](https://images.dailycaller.com/image/width=960,height=411,fit=cover,f=auto/https://cdn01.dailycaller.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Screenshot-2023-05-03-at-11.19.32-AM-e1683127220960.png "MSNBC's Joe Scarborough worried Wednesday whether Democrats refusal to negotiate with Republicans on raising the debt ceiling could backfire. [Screenshot Morning Joe]")
MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough worried Wednesday whether Democrats’ refusal to negotiate with Republicans on raising the debt ceiling could backfire.
Republicans passed a bill that would raise the debt ceiling to prevent a default while also cutting spending and enacting reforms. President Joe Biden and the Democrats have rejected the proposal, instead arguing for an unconditional debt limit increase. Speaker Kevin McCarthy is slated to meet with Biden to discuss issue.
Scarborough was joined by former Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill, noting that Democrats are simply hoping Republicans might cave. (RELATED: ‘Would It Kill You To Just Do Something?’: CNBC Host Tears Into Dem Over Refusal To Negotiate With Republicans On Debt)
“Claire, I want to ask you about where we stand now in the debt ceiling negotiations.,” Scarborough said. “You’ve got Republicans who have actually passed a bill and they have presented a pretty tough look at spending cuts over the next decade or so. Democrats are still saying, ‘you know what? We’re gonna do nothing. Just going to come to the table with nothing but a clean debt ceiling increase.’ That doesn’t seem like- just doesn’t seem like that’s a winning hand. It seems like they’ll be blamed for that. Why couldn’t they come forward saying, ‘I’ll tell you what we’ll do, we’re gonna save these programs for the poor, for children, for the truly disadvantaged and we’re gonna do it by finishing- ending the Trump tax cuts.'”
McCaskill argued that “it is only the Republican Party under Democratic presidents that really plays with fire here. The Democrats under Trump, they passed the debt ceiling early after Trump even admitted that it’s stupid to try to negotiate around whether or not the country is going to pay its bills. So, ultimately I think that Democrats will succeed in isolating the Republicans on being willing to do this.”
McCaskill then alleged that McCarthy is letting “the most extreme” members of his party control him when it comes to negotiations.
The U.S. is expected to hit the debt limit on June 1, according to the Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.