Debt options abound, but can Biden, McCarthy strike a deal?

The White House and Congress could strike a deal to raise the debt ceiling in exchange for budget cuts. Or they could agree to a stopgap measure to keep paying the nation’s bills while negotiations continue. They also could let the negotiations unravel, sending the economy into a chaos. 

As President Joe Biden prepares to meet with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and the congressional leaders this week for the first time over the debt ceiling crisis, the options for easing out of the standoff are many. 

“We have to avoid default, period. Full stop,” the House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said over the weekend.