Debt Ceiling: Obama, Republicans to Meet At White House

President Obama will meet with House Republicans at the White House today in an effort to make progress on raising the nation's debt limit.

This will be the first time that Obama has met with the entirety of the House Republicans since the GOP swept back into power in 2010, and his choice to invite them now underscores the urgency of resolving the current impasse over the debt ceiling.

Republicans have refused to endorse raising the ceiling without attendant spending cuts, and a series of bipartisan talks led by Vice President Joe Biden have produced scant progress.

An increase in the national debt limit that is not accompanied by significant spending cuts and budget reforms to address our government's spending addiction will harm private-sector job creation in America, read a statement released by House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) in advance of today's meeting. It is critical that any debt limit legislation enacted by Congress include spending cuts and reforms that are greater than the accompanying increase in debt authority being granted to the president.

Democrats have accused Republicans of exploiting the situation for political gain, arguing that there is too much at stake to risk the nation defaulting on its debt. House Republicans yesterday forced a vote on a measure to raise the ceiling without cutting spending, a move that Democrats dismissed as empty showmanship.

This is a political stunt, said Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.). This is about threatening to default on the full faith and credit of the United States unless we put in place a Republican budget.

The symbolic vote mirrored a move last week by Senate Democrats, who called a vote on Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI)'s divisive budget plan in order to reject it and to expose fractures in the Senate Republican conference, with moderate members choosing to vote against their party's budget proposal.