Pelosi Statement on Necessity of Lifting the Debt Ceiling

Washington, D.C. – Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi issued this statement following Speaker McCarthy’s remarks on the debt ceiling:

“Failure to address the debt limit would be catastrophic: erasing good-paying jobs, shuttering small businesses and tanking the global economy.  In 2011, even the suggestion that the United States would not be able to pay its debts lowered our credit rating, drove interest rates up for consumers and companies, and diminished our economy.

“For two decades, I worked with four Presidents – both as Speaker and as Minority Leader – to lift the debt limit.  Now, I see signs of danger ahead from the comments of the House Republican Majority.

“The Speaker and House Republicans seem to have forgotten that they added $2 trillion to the national debt to give tax cuts to the wealthiest few – while at the same time working to slash the vital lifelines on which working families depend.  

“In contrast, President Biden’s economic agenda has enabled the creation of 12 million new jobs, while reducing the deficit by more than $1 trillion last year alone. 

“House Republicans are both threatening our nation’s full faith and credit, while at the same time forcing painful cuts on America’s families.  It is unconscionable that Republicans would even consider putting Social Security and Medicare on the chopping block or repealing lower prescription drug prices that Democrats enacted last year.  Frighteningly, some in the Republican Conference even seem willing to let America default.

“We must all work together to address the debt ceiling in a responsible way.”