US President Barack Obama and senior Republican lawmakers failed to reach an agreement on a short-term debt limit extension after a meeting on Thursday.\n<\/p>\n
Obama met with House Republicans at the White House to discuss a six-week extension of the government™s borrowing limit which would help Washington avoid a possible default on its debt as the October 17 deadline for raising the nation™s debt ceiling is approaching.\n<\/p>\n
The Republican-offered measure, which runs through November 22, only dealt with raising the debt limit and did not address the US government shutdown, which is now in its second week.\n<\/p>\n
The White House meeting on Thursday, 10 days into the federal government™s partial shutdown, was described by the Obama administration as œgood” and by House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Virginia) as œvery useful.”\n<\/p>\n
House Republicans initially sought to tie government funding to defunding or dismantling Obama™s signature Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. They had also indicated that they would not agree to raise the debt ceiling without provisions that would defund or delay Obamacare.\n<\/p>\n
However, the GOP™s latest offer for a short-term debt limit extension indicated a shift in their decisions as the White House and congressional Democrats were declaring victory even before Thursday™s meeting at the evidence that Republicans were suffering more in polls.\n<\/p>\n
Republicans are still seeking a commitment by Obama to negotiate a deal for long-term deficit reduction and tax overhaul.\n<\/p>\n
However, according to Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin), the president œdidn™t say yes, didn™t say no.”\n<\/p>\n
US officials are running short of time for talks over raising the debt limit as the nation™s current debt ceiling of $16.7 trillion will be reached next week.\n<\/p>\n
According to US law, the government cannot breach a certain debt limit and lawmakers must pass legislation to authorize the government to exceed that limit. If such legislation is not passed, the government cannot pay its bills.\n<\/p>\n
The International Monetary Fund has warned that a possible US default on its obligations would wreak havoc on the global economy.\n<\/p>\n
The US Treasury has also warned of catastrophic effects of a possible US debt default, saying it would cause œirrevocable damage” to the US economy.\n<\/p>\n
ISH\/ISH<\/p>\n