Democratic Senator Joe Manchin is urging President Biden to negotiate with Republicans to raise the debt ceiling. In a statement, Manchin applauded House Speaker McCarthy for introducing a bill to lift the debt limit by one-point-five-trillion dollars through March of next year. Manchin went on to slam Biden for showing a “deficiency of leadership” as he’s resisted calls to negotiate an increase and avoid a default. The West Virginia Democrat said he doesn’t agree with everything in the Republican proposal, but said it’s an important step to avoid a crisis. The White House has demanded Congress raise the debt ceiling without conditions.