Republican rejects claim they were holding economy hostage — it's using 'leverage' to 'force' Democrats
Speaking to CNN's Jim Acosta on Sunday, Rep. Kelly Armstrong (R-ND) disputed the characterization that his party was holding the debt ceiling hostage, and the economy along with it.
It was an attack lodged by Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-FL) on Saturday, saying that Republicans never had to use the debt ceiling in their negotiations. The GOP could have used the budget negotiations to get the cuts they wanted without bringing the American economy to the brink of another shutdown.
After watching the shutdown during Barack Obama's administration, political analysts think Biden drew a line for that reason, saying he wouldn't negotiate on the debt ceiling. He'd only negotiate on the budget. In the end, it's what Republicans ultimately did, but Kelly twisted the comment to say that Biden said he wouldn't negotiate and the GOP got him to do it.
"I think the White House is coming around to the point that they don't control all three branches of government anymore," Kelly claimed. "As we've done through Congress and all times in divided government, we're going to take the leverage we have and we're going to force fiscal sanity back."
A hostage is someone who is "captured by a person or organization and who may be killed or injured if people do not do what that person or organization demands," the definition says. Using leverage to force demands is what Kelly said.
The comments and the agreement came days after the chairperson of the Republican Party said that a default on the debt would help Republicans in 2024.
See the clip from Kelly below or at the link here.
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