A meeting between the secretary of the U.S. Treasury and the top Republican and Democratic senators did not resolve differences over raising the debt ceiling so the government will not default on its debts, according to a report in The Washington Post.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin met with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., on Aug. 1 to talk about the debt ceiling, the report said, citing three people briefed on the discussions.
Mnuchin has urged Congress to pass a clean bill raising the debt ceiling, meaning one that is unencumbered by unrelated or controversial measures. It remains to be seen whether the two parties will accede to that request or pursue cuts or spending add-ons to the bill.
McConnell told Reuters after the meeting that legislators were looking for a "way forward" to raise the debt ceiling.
Mnuchin extended Treasury's use of extraordinary measures to keep paying the government's debt until Sept. 29. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that Treasury could run out of cash in early- to mid-October.
White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in her daily press briefing that Congress should raise the debt ceiling "as soon as possible," the Post reported.
Representatives for Treasury and Sen. Schumer did not respond to emailed requests for comment. A spokesman for McConnell referred to his comments after the meeting.