White House says hopeful Congress will take responsible action on U.S. debt limit

[October 09, 2015]  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House urged Republicans in Congress on Thursday to move beyond their leadership struggles and pass critical legislation, including raising the U.S. debt ceiling.

"That is the responsibility of members of Congress," said White House spokesman Josh Earnest.

He said there have been several instances in the past few years in which a Republican-dominated House of Representatives has managed to raise the debt ceiling without political brinkmanship.

"And we're hopeful that in spite of this chaos, that Republicans and Democrats in the House will do the same thing again," Earnest said at a news briefing.

(Reporting by Doina Chiacu and Susan Heavey; Editing by Lisa Lambert)

[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.