Debt ceiling negotiations stall: James Carville says 'it's an expensive game that they are playing'

Debt ceiling talks between White House and Republican negotiators came to a halt on Friday, with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) telling reporters, “we’ve got to get movement by the White House. And we don’t have any movement yet.” Meanwhile, a White House official told Yahoo Finance “there are real differences between the parties on budget issues and talks will be difficult.” Longtime Democratic strategist James Carville told Yahoo Finance’s Seana Smith and Akiko Fujita that when it comes to debt talks, both Republicans and Democrats are feeling pressure. Carville said he is "scared to death" of a default, adding "it's an expensive game that they are playing." Part of the reason for Carville's concern is that Republicans "think they can damage the United States and in the process of damaging the United States, they can damage Joe Biden." "I'm not totally confident that they will come around and do what's in the interest of the United States. I hope I'm wrong," Carville said. As for Democrats, Carville says they should be emphasizing how former President Donald Trump's spending contributed to the debt, but that so far, "our communications effort to this point has been negligible." He also said Democrats should remind voters that the choice is "to default or not to default." Longer-term, he says they should focus on emphasizing the economy, "if we keep this economy going, people will feel the effects of it." Key video moments: 00:00:45 Carville on stalled debt limit talks 00:01:38 Carville explains why "there is pressure everywhere" 00:03:08 What this means for 2024 races 00:04:15 The political calculations for Democrats 00:05:28 Why Biden isn't benefiting from economic strength 00:06:23 "It's an expensive game that they are playing" 00:07:05 What should Democrat messaging should be 00:09:10 Carville on the 2024 GOP presidential candidates