Pelosi, Schumer Seek to Combine Debt Limit Measure With Bill to Avert Government Shutdown

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and then-Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) speak at a press conference marking the one year anniversary of the House passing H.R. 1, the "For the People Act," in Washington on March 10, 2020. Win McNamee/Getty Images

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) announced this week that Democrats would combine a short-term government funding bill with a measure to suspend the U.S. debt limit, in a bid to avoid a government shutdown.

In a joint statement on Sept. 20, Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said the “American people expect our Republican colleagues to live up to their responsibilities and make good on the debts they proudly helped incur in the December 2020 ‘908’ COVID package that helped American families and small businesses reeling from the COVID crisis.”