Biden Says Speaker McCarthy Is Choosing His Job Over ‘American Interests’ In Government Shutdown Negotiations

President Joe Biden on Wednesday accused House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., of putting the U.S. government at risk of a shutdown in order to keep his position.

“The fact is that I think that the speaker is making a choice between the speakership and American interests,” Biden said at a campaign reception hosted by Tom Steyer and Kat Taylor, according to a pool report of the event.

The president added that a shutdown would be “disastrous,” noting that he had negotiated with McCarthy on a budget deal earlier this year to avoid a default.

“Now they come along and say … we didn’t mean it,” Biden said.

Earlier Wednesday, Biden called on House Republicans to do their jobs to avoid a shutdown.

"If we have a government shutdown, a lot of vital work in science and health could be impacted, from cancer research to food safety," Biden said during a meeting with his Council of Advisors on Science and Technology in California. "So the American people need our Republican friends in the House of Representatives to do their job: Fund the government."

Funding for the government is expected to expire on Sept. 30. 

McCarthy said he wants to see border security to be part of any plan to avert a government shutdown. The speaker said Wednesday that he doesn’t see support for a Senate proposal for a seven-week government funding extension, which did not contain border security provisions. The House GOP also rejected a proposal from Senate Republicans to add money for border security personnel.