URGENT: Biden says deal struck “in principle” to avert debt default

U.S. President Joe Biden said on Saturday that he has reached an agreement “in principle” with House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy to avert an unprecedented government debt default.

“The agreement represents a compromise, which means not everyone gets what they want,” Biden said in a statement. “And, this agreement is good news for the American people, because it prevents what could have been a catastrophic default and would have led to an economic recession, retirement accounts devastated and millions of jobs lost.”