Joe Biden is scheduled to meet with opposition leaders on Tuesday to try to reach an agreement on the public debt. Democrats and Republicans strongly disagree on the issue.
The administration is multiplying warnings against the consequences of this blockage. Republicans have refused to raise the ceiling on US public debt, the heaviest in the world. They are demanding draconian budget cuts, a strategy described as blackmail by the Democrats. "Negotiations should not take place with a gun to the head of the American people," Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said.