Fed chair urges Congress to raise debt limit

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell this week called on Congress to raise the debt ceiling as lawmakers continue to argue over budgetary matters ahead of a looming deadline.

Powell spoke during a House Financial Services Committee hearing and told lawmakers they "must raise" the debt ceiling and that the Fed was incapable of unilaterally protecting the U.S. from default.

"No one should assume that the Fed can protect the economy from the non-payment of the government's bills, let alone a debt default," The Hill reported him as saying.

The U.S. hit its $31.38 trillion spending limit in January, prompting Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to announce "extraordinary measures" to keep the government operating.

Democrats have advocated for a clean increase to the debt limit to avoid a default while Republicans have sought to pair any such increase with spending cuts so as to address the nation's mounting national debt.

President Joe Biden's own budget proposal will reportedly include efforts to slash projected deficits by as much as $3 trillion over ten years. House Speaker McCarthy, meanwhile, has proposed his own spending cuts, to the consternation of Democratic lawmakers.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on Twitter.