House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. | Photo courtesy of Gage Skidmore/Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)
In an unfolding political standoff, House Republicans have proposed attaching wildfire disaster aid for Southern California to a federal debt limit increase, a strategy met with staunch opposition from California Democrats.
The idea was floated during meetings with President-elect Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago. Republican legislators, wielding a narrow majority, face a monumental challenge in securing votes necessary to raise the debt ceiling without Democratic support, posing an economic hurdle for the incoming administration.
“I think there should probably be conditions on that aid,” Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., told reporters…
