Republicans are struggling to come up with a plan to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, which could result in significant harm to the global economy if not addressed. Speaker Kevin McCarthy has urged President Biden to negotiate a deal that would cut spending in exchange for lifting the debt ceiling, but Republicans have yet to agree on a set of spending cuts they would demand. This is a marked change from prior years when Republicans held together in their hostaged plan to extract ransoms by not voting to raise the debt ceiling unless their demands were met.

The Republicans' failure to come up with a plan before the debt limit expires in the coming months has left them scrambling to come up with alternative solutions. Some have suggested attaching a debt-ceiling hike to a bipartisan plan to reform infrastructure permits, while others are urging Biden to negotiate with them even without passing a plan of their own. However, Biden has made it clear that he won't pay any ransom to lift the debt ceiling, leaving the Republicans in a difficult position.

The longer the Republicans delay a plan, the more the possibility of a catastrophic blow to the economy increases. McCarthy may have to choose between losing his speakership or tanking the U.S. economy, as the House Republicans are far from united on what they would support in a deal to raise the debt ceiling. The internal disagreements on this issue are likely to take time to work out, leaving the economy vulnerable to disruption.