No debt ceiling agreement as White House, Republicans eye specific cuts, including IRS funding: Reports

Congressional Republicans and the Biden administration are nearing a deal on raising the debt limit and cutting spending as talks to avoid defaulting on the nation’s debt continued into Thursday evening, according to multiple reports.

The New York Times reported that the potential deal would provide a two-year increase in the debt limit and cap on all non-defense and veteran-related federal spending. Spending on the military and some veteran related care would increase next year, while non-defense spending would either fall or stay the same, the report said.

The same report said that the deal would also reduce by $10 billion the controversial $80 billion Congress approved for the IRS last year for thousands more IRS agents.

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The Washington Post reported White House aides were considering trimming the billions in IRS funding as a concession to keep intact funding for other domestic programs. The report similarly said the Biden administration and members of Congress involved in the talks were seeing progress towards an agreement.

However, sources familiar with the talks were less positive, telling Fox News Digital the parties involved had “not agreed” on any of the top line items or on a one or two year extension of the debt limit. The source added that they could not agree on any components until there was an agreement on defense and non-defense discretionary spending.

When reached for comment, the White House told Fox it had “nothing to share.” Earlier in the day, President Biden said he and Republicans are in full agreement that the U.S. will not default on its debt, but clarified that many points remain to be negotiated before a budget deal can be made.

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Lawmakers are scrambling to negotiate a budget deal that will allow the U.S. to raise the debt ceiling and avoid defaulting for the first time in the country’s history. The deadline for a deal arrives June 1.

The frantic dealmaking comes after months of Biden’s White House insisting they would not negotiate with Republicans, arguing that Congress should simply raise the debt ceiling no questions asked.

Fox News reached out to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s office but did not immediately receive a response.

Fox News’ Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.