Why Dems want to raise the debt ceiling early

Democrats weigh lifting the debt ceiling before January; Myanmar airstrike kills dozens at an outdoor concert.

Tonight's Sentences was written by Jariel Arvin.

Democrats push to lift the debt ceiling before January

Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

• Congressional Democrats are contemplating raising the federal debt ceiling before the new Congress in January. [Vox / Li Zhou]
• Failing to lift the ceiling (basically, the amount the US can legally borrow) could lead the US to default on its debt, triggering a recession and battering global financial markets. [Washington Post / Jeff Stein and Marianna Sotomayor]
• Republicans have publicly discussed using the threat of a default to force cuts to programs like Medicare and Social Security if they gain control of the House in the midterms. [ABC News / Tal Axelrod]
• Senate Democrats would likely need support from 10 Republicans, or to carve out a exception to the filibuster, to raise the ceiling. [Axios / Hans Nichols]
• President Joe Biden is reportedly supportive of raising the ceiling early, but has ruled out eliminating it. [Business Insider / Juliana Kaplan]

📍 If you read just one story

Vox’s Madeline Marshall explains why the US is always hitting a debt ceiling. [Vox / Madeline Marshall]

Airstrike kills dozens at Myanmar concert

• A Myanmar military airstrike reportedly killed at least 80 people Sunday at an outdoor concert in the northern state of Kachin. [New York Times / Richard C. Paddock]
• According to local reports, jets dropped four bombs as hundreds gathered to celebrate the anniversary of the Kachin ethnic minority's Kachin Independence Organization. [Al Jazeera]
• Violence between the government and ethnic minorities has spanned decades. Ongoing conflicts increased after the military took power in a coup in February 2021. [Guardian / Oliver Holmes]
• The US and Western allies condemned the attacks for violating international humanitarian law. [Associated Press / Grant Peck]

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Tuesday, sportswear brand Adidas ended its partnership with the rapper formerly known as Kanye West over his antisemitic remarks. [Vox / Aja Romano]

• The year’s last solar eclipse will be visible Tuesday in Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. [CNN / Taylor Nicioli]
• On Tuesday, a Russian court upheld WNBA star Brittney Griner’s nine-year sentence for drug smuggling charges. [New York Times]
• The US National Institutes of Health has acknowledged that repeated blows to the head can cause the degenerative brain disease CTE. [Guardian / Andy Bull]

“There’s nothing — nothing — that will create more chaos, more inflation, more damage to the American economy than this.”

[President Joe Biden on failing to lift the debt ceiling / Axios]

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