Yesterday, the White House announced that Joe Biden will meet with House and Senate leaders about the debt limit on May 9. That’s the good news. The bad news is that Biden still thinks he doesn’t have to negotiate in any meaningful way. Politico is reporting that an anonymous source is saying “If you need to hear again that it’s your responsibility to address the debt ceiling without conditions and a ransom, then he can say that again.”

The administration still thinks that have the upper hand in this fight. They’ve brushed aside the Limit, Save, Grow Act that House Republicans passed without a single Democrat vote. Hakeem Jeffries brushed the bill aside, saying that “President Biden has produced a budget. House Republicans produced a ransom note. That is what the Default on America Act is, and that is wildly irresponsible.”

[I think they realize that they have to offer McCarthy and McConnell some concessions. Even their allies in the Senate are balking at the no-negotiations political strategy. They’ll try to limit the cuts, but they’ll have to offer *some*. — Ed]