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down to paying what we already owe. it starts with a simple truth. the united states pays its bills and always has read from its inception, we have never defaulted. that keeps us a great nation.

so, security benefits for seniors, salaries for brave servicemembers and veterans and other financial obligations for people and our nation. we will meet these obligations based on the revenue from taxes. and, based on our ability to borrow when we need it. in that case, we are able to borrow because we always pay our debt. we always pay what we owe. we never fail. that is america. that is who we are. that is what is called for. it is called full faith in credit of the united states. it is rocksolid. it is the best in the world. here is the deal. there is a caps on what we can borrow called the debt limit. only congress can raise or lower that limit. let me be really clear. this is really important. raising the debt limit is about paying off our old debt.

it has nothing to do with any new spending being considered. it has nothing to do with my plan for infrastructure or building back better. zero. zero. both of which i might add are paid for. so, if we are going to make good on what has already been approved by previous congresses and previous presidents and parties, we have to pay for poet. social security benefit -- pay for it. social security benefits, salaries for servicemen and women, benefits for veterans. we have to raise the debt limit to meet those obligations. raising the debt limit is usually a bipartisan undertaking and it should be. that is not what is happening today. the reason we have to raise the debt limit is not a part of the reckless spending policies under the previous trump administration -- is in part due to the reckless spending policies of the previous trump

administration. in four years they created a trillion dollars of additional debt in bills we have to now pay off more than 25% of the entire debt incurred after more than 200 years. republicans in congress raised the debt three times when donald trump was president. each time with democrat support. now, they won't raise it. even though they are responsible for more than $8 trillion in bills incurred in four years under the previous ministration area that is what we would be paying off. they won't wait -- the previous administration. that is what we would be paying off. defaulted on the debt would take our economy over a cliff and risk jobs, retirement savings, social security benefits, salaries for service members, benefits for veterans, and more. a failure will call into

question congresses willingness to meet our obligations we have already incurred. this will undermine the safety of u.s. treasury securities. it will threaten the reserve status of the dollar as of the world currency. the world relies on the american credit rating will be downgraded. interest rates will rise for mortgages, auto loans, credit cards and borrowing. folks, watch it at home. -- folks watching at home, this is the republican position. they will not vote to raise the debt limit to cover their own spending. democrats voted with them to cover that spending. the last four years. they say democrats should do it alone. but, then, they are threatening to use a procedural power called the filibuster, meaning, that we would have to get 60 votes, not 50 votes, to increase the debt

limit. this would block the democrats from raising the debt limit. let's be clear. not only are republicans refusing to do their job, they are threatening to use their power to prevent us from doing our job. that is saving the economy from a catastrophic event. i think, frankly, it is hypocritical, dangerous, and disgraceful. there obstruction and irresponsibility knows no bounds. especially as we are clawing our way out of this pandemic. democrats will meet our responsibility and obligation to the country. we are not expecting republicans to do their part. they made that clear from the beginning. we tried asking, to no avail. we are just asking them not to use procedural tricks to block us from doing the job they won't do.

a meteor is headed to crash into our economy. democrats are willing to do all the work to stop it. republicans just have to let us do our job, just get out of the way. if you don't want to help save the country, get out of the way so you don't destroy it. we don't have time to delay with elaborate procedural schemes which republicans proposals require. scores of votes without any certainty at all. many of which have nothing to do with the debt limit. that is when accidents happen. in the days ahead, even before the defaulted date, people may see the value of their retirement accounts shrink. they may see interest rates go up. that will only rage their mortgage payments and car payments. that's raise their mortgage payments and car payments. -- raising their mortgage payments and car payments. as soon as this week your savings in the pocketbook could

be directly impacted by this republican stunt. it is as simple as that. republicans say they will not do their part to avoid this needless calamity. so be it. but, they need to stop playing russian roulette with the u.s. economy. it is one thing to pay our debts already acquired. it is another to require a super majority pay the debts already acquired. it is not right. let the democrats vote to raise the ceiling this week. without obstruction or further delays. democrats in the house have already passed a bill that would do that. it is sitting in the u.s. senate where democrats have the votes ready to pass it. that is the only way to -- the uncertainty and risk that will harm american families and our economy. let's into the mess -- let's vote and in the mess. we must get this done.

like i said, it's playing russian roulette to play these games. we can do it this week. just get out of the way and let us pass it. thank you. >> mitch mcconnell says he sent a letter to you explaining his view. have you seen that letter? how dire do you believe this is? president biden: i did get a letter 10 minutes before i walked in. i read it. i plan to talk to mitch about it. he and i have been down this road before. that was back when i was vice president. i hope we can have an honest conversation about what he is proposing. i think the easiest way to do this and if the republicans would not use the buster would be to let us vote on -- using the muster would be to let us vote on what is already in the senate -- the filibuster would

be to let us vote on what is already in the senate now and we can do that in the next 10 days. >> you have touted your 36 years and it is that it. your aides have talked about your disclosure on yields involving legislation. why were you unable to close the deal? with members of your own party on key parts of your legislative agenda last week? president biden: i was able to close the deal was 99% of my party. two people. it still underway. -- it is still underway. i don't think there has been a president who has been able to close a deal in a position where he has only 50 votes in the senate and a bare majority out of the house. it is a process. it is a process. we will get it done. >> it sounds like you are

putting the blame on two u.s. senators for the ability to close the deal -- the inability to close the deal, senator senator -- senator cinema and senator manchin. >> look, i need 50 votes in the senate. i have 48. >> schumer has said you will not raise the debt ceiling through the reconciliation process. if push comes to shove, what is more important? the position senator schumer has or raising the debt ceiling? i also have a question for you in ethiopia. president biden: number one, the issue of reconciliation, which is, what is reconciliation? there is a process that i understand the republican leader is willing to initiate and go

through that would require literally up to hundreds of votes. it has nothing to do directly with the debt limit and can be from anything from ethiopia to anything else. it has nothing to do with that limit. it is fraught with all kinds of potential danger for miscalculation. it would have to happen twice. so, you could literally have several hundred votes over the next number of days. everything else would come to a standstill. but, you would still find yourself in a situation where the end of the day you may pass something that has to be undone again by democrats or republicans. it is an incredibly complicated, cumbersome process. there is a very simple process out there. it is sitting at the desk in the united states senate. it is a bill passed by the house

saying that we mcgrath will raise -- we democrats will raise the debt limit. that is the way to proceed. >> reconciliation or raising the debt ceiling? which position? >> i'm not going to cross that bridge until we have to get there. >> regarding your build back better agenda, senator manchin -- senator cinema says she is negotiating with the white house. what is her ticket? is it between 1.5 million and 3.5 million? >> i'm not going to negotiate in

public. >> how was what the republicans are doing now different from when you opposed raising the debt limit? >> because we weren't calling for a filibuster. it was a straight up and down vote. >> you talked about how you have a 48 democratic votes now. in the other two have been pressured over the weekend by activists. joe manchin had people on kayaks show up to his boat. senator cinema last night was chased into arrestor. -- chased into a restroom. do you think those tactics are crossing the line? >> i don't think they are appropriate tactics but it happens to anybody. the only people it does -- it doesn't happen to have secret service around them. >> what do you think the size of

the reconciliation package should be? what dollar figure? >> i told you what i thought it would be. it won't be that. it will be less. look, the legislation, both the bill back better peace and the infrastructure piece are things i wrote. these did not come from, god love him, bernie sanders, or aoc or anyone else. i wrote them. i disagreed with medicare for all, but, in doubt what i thought would be important, for example, the bill back better program, i think, it should require that we have, in fact, the best education available to us. i will be speaking to this in detail tomorrow. look, here is the situation. how can we, in an ever

competitive world, increasingly competitive world, how can we not meet the educational standards that other countries are working towards. nobody is reducing the number of years they want their children to go to school. as my wife says, if we -- if other countries will outcompete us. look at what china is doing. they are investing. they are investing in things that relate for the ability to people to go to work and stay at work. there are several million women who cannot go back to work because they don't have anyone to take care of their children. to give a tax cut to a working mom to be able to afford daycare , is that a bad idea? i think it's a good idea. it will get people back to work. there are a lot of things in the legislation i will be talking about across the country. i think the american people

overwhelmingly support these things. but, the idea that somehow this is somebody else's legislation, this is what i wrote. >> would a $2 trillion reconciliation bill be acceptable to you? >> as you know, it is not a smart thing to negotiate with yourself in public. we are in the process of continuing to talk all the parties and see what we can get done. >> you said you are making progress in negotiation. today you only had 48 votes. what's a struggle? you against corruption. you said you could fight against corruption.

what is your reaction? do you plan to do any thing about us? >> the first part of your question was what? >> it was about progress in negotiation. >> can you guarantee the u.s. will not reach the debt ceiling? that that will not happen? >> no i can't. that's up to mitch mcconnell. >> so it's possible the u.s. will not pay it yet? -- it's debt? >> i don't believe that will be the end result because the consequence is so dire. but can i get. ? if i could, i would, but i can't. thank you very much. >> the high commitment as it relates to covid. where you stand on that -- to be hyde amendment -- the hyde

amendment as it relates to covid, where you stand on that sir? >> on the senate floor, minority leader mitch mcconnell spoke about raising the debt ceiling. he called on senate majority leader chuck schumer to have the debt ceiling raised by a simple majority through the reconciliation process. cconnell: i want to begin today with a quotation. quote, because this massive accumulation of debt was predicted because it was foreseeable, because it was unnecessary, because it was the result of willful and reckless disregard for the warnings that were given and for the fundamentals of economic management, i'm voting against the debt limit increase. now, madam president, at