Today, Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) introduced legislation to force seven calendar days of transparency before any debt limit deal is passed by the Senate.
The measure is in the form of a point of order and reads as follows:
It shall not be in order in the Senate to proceed to any measure that would increase the statutory limit on the public debt above $14.294 trillion unless that measure has been available on a public website for a full 7 calendar days before consideration on the floor of the Senate.
If Sessions’ measure were to pass, any closed door deal would have to be shared on a “public website” by July 26th to not violate the proposed new Senate rule.
Reuters reports that “U.S. President Barack Obama and congressional leaders will meet for the third time in as many days on Tuesday to try to reach a bipartisan deal to increase the fast-approaching U.S. debt limit, a Democratic aide said.” This meeting will be in secret. They will not be transparent. The American people are going to want some time to review any deal before itis considered by their Senators and Representative.
There has been little to no transparency on the debt limit negotiations to date. The President had a press conference today, yet a press conference is not enough. Nobody has released the specific details of what may be in a debt limit deal. The American people have a right to review any secretly crafted deal between Republican and Democrat leaders.
