The US Senate voted to raise the government debt limit by $ 2.5 trillion, to $ 31.4 trillion, C-SPAN TV reports. Senators supported the bill by a margin of one vote according to party affiliation: 50 Democrats voted in favor, 49 Republicans voted against. The document is pending approval in the US House of Representatives.
Senators supported the draft of a new ceiling of the national debt on December 14 local time. Earlier, the head of the US Treasury Janet Yellen said that if the limit is not increased by December 15, then the ministry may not have enough resources “to continue funding the activities of the US government after that date.”
The bill was approved by agreement between Senate Democratic Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Republican Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. The agreement was concluded last week. Thanks to him, the document was promoted in Congress without 60 senators’ approval, as is required for most bills. The new debt ceiling will meet the needs of the US government until 2023, Mr. Schumer said.
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