On Tuesday afternoon, the House of Representatives Rules Committee will vote on whether to send the measure to a full House vote, which will take place on Wednesday. This is the first major roadblock for the debt-ceiling bill presented by President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
Normally, the committee would pass on any bill the Speaker brought. However, McCarthy appointed three staunch conservatives to the panel of 13 in January to secure their support in his run for House speaker. According to Reuters, two of those MPs have already opposed the plan. According to a CNN story from Tuesday, two of the three committee members have already indicated they would support the measure, and Thomas Massie is slated to be the deciding vote.
There are also four Democrats on the panel. In general, Democrats are against legislation supported by Republicans, but whether or not they would reject legislation co-created by Biden is uncertain, according to Reuters.
House party leaders on both sides of the aisle are contacting their members of Congress to urge them to support the plan. Early Tuesday, CNN reported that Republican leaders think they have secured support from more than half of the Republican conference, or at least 150 votes. To get into the Senate, the measure needs the support of at least half of the Democrats in the House.
On Monday, President Biden said that he had spoken with many members of Congress over the weekend. He expressed optimism about the bill’s chances, saying, “I spoke to a whole bunch of people, and it feels good.”
Some senators advocate changes to the package to make minor adjustments, which may lead to arguments and postpone the chamber’s final vote on the pact.
The mood in the stock market is rather upbeat. While the Dow fell 0.4% on Tuesday, the Nasdaq rose 0.7%, and the S&P nudged up 0.2%.
The bond market has a more significant reaction. The chance of a U.S. default has decreased in the eyes of investors, as the yield on the 1-month Treasury note has fallen 35 basis points to just under 5.2%. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note has down 10 basis points to 3.71%.
Featured Image: Freepik @ wasant_foodtography
Author Shariq Khan 
