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Transcript/ScriptUS DEBT LIMIT TV
HEADLINE: No Deal on US Debt Limit
TEASER: If agreement is not reached in next few weeks, US will go into default, sending financial shockwaves worldwide
PUBLISHED AT: Tuesday, 05/09/2023 at 22:29 EDT
BYLINE: Patsy Widakuswara
CONTRIBUTOR: Anita Powell
DATELINE: Washington
VIDEOGRAPHER: AP, AFP, Skype
VIDEO EDITOR: Bakhtiyar Zamanov
SCRIPT EDITORS: Reifenrath, DJ OK, Holly Franko
VIDEO SOURCES: AP, AFP, Skype
PLATFORMS: WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO __
TRT: 2:06
VID APPROVED BY: pcd
TYPE: TVPKG
EDITOR NOTES: ))
((INTRO:))
[[President Joe Biden and congressional leaders reached no deal during a Tuesday meeting to resolve the impasse on raising the limit the government can borrow to meet its financial obligations. If no agreement is reached in the next few weeks, the U.S. will go into default for the first time in history, sending financial shockwaves around the world. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara reports.]]
((NARRATOR))
President Joe Biden sought to calm global market jitters over the looming crisis weeks before the nation is at risk of defaulting on its obligations
for the first time in history.
((President Joe Biden))
“I made clear during our meeting that default is not an option. I repeated that time and again. America is not a deadbeat nation.”
((NARRATOR))
Biden met Tuesday afternoon with congressional leaders in a bid to resolve the months-long impasse to ensure the government can borrow more money to pay its bills.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a Republican, refuses to raise the debt limit unless it’s paired with spending cuts.
((Kevin McCarthy, Speaker of the House))
“The House has raised the debt ceiling in a responsible manner. Curb our spending at the same time, bring us economic growth. And I asked the president this simple question: Does he not believe there's any place we could find savings?”
((NARRATOR))
Failure to raise the U.S. debt ceiling could not only spark a U.S. recession
but also send shockwaves to global financial markets,
warns White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.
((Karine Jean-Pierre, White House Press Secretary))
“Default would create global uncertainty about the value of the U.S. dollar and U.S. institutions and leadership, leading to volatility in currency and financial markets and commodity markets that are priced in dollars."
((NARRATOR))
The U.S. economy is the largest in the world, and the U.S. dollar is the world’s dominant reserve currency.
Should the U.S. fail to pay its debts, it would trigger a sell-off in U.S. Treasury bonds, weakening the dollar and raising interest rates, analysts say.
((Radio track: Desmond Lachman, former deputy director at the International Monetary Fund, now a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, via Skype.))
((Desmond Lachman, American Enterprise Institute)) ((Skype))
“If interest rates in the United States go up, it's going to take all other interest rates up with it. It's going to make all other risk assets look very shaky.”
((NARRATOR))
U.S. Treasury bonds are traditionally considered the safest investment. Despite the turmoil, a former top economist at the State Department says countries and investors need not be overly concerned about a U.S. default.
((Radio track: Heidi Crebo-Rediker, former chief economist at U.S. Department of State, now adjunct senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, via Zoom.))
((Heidi Crebo-Rediker, Council on Foreign Relations)) ((Zoom))
“This is a question of willingness to pay, not ability to pay. And that is a very big distinction when you're looking at default.”
((NARRATOR))
The leaders are set for another meeting on Friday.
((Patsy Widakuswara, VOA News, Washington))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Location (dateline)
Washington D.C.
Embargo DateMay 9, 2023 22:08 EDT
Byline
Patsy Widakuswara, VOA News
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
