President Joe Biden and top Republican Kevin McCarthy are due to meet at the White House on Monday for talks on lifting the US debt ceiling.
The pair spoke on the phone on Sunday as the president was travelling back from the G7 summit in Japan.
The two sides remain at odds over budget cuts demanded by the Republicans as a condition for raising the ceiling.
The debt ceiling is a spending limit set by Congress which determines how much money the government can borrow.
Failure to raise it beyond the current cap of roughly $31.4tn (£25.2tn) by June could result in the US defaulting on its debt.
That would mean the government could not borrow any more money or pay all of its bills. It would also threaten to wreak havoc on the global economy, affecting prices and mortgage rates in other countries.
As he left Japan on Sunday, Mr Biden told reporters that proposals by Republicans – who control the House of Representatives – were “simply, quite frankly, unacceptable”.
He added: “It’s time for Republicans to accept that there is no bipartisan deal to be made solely, solely on their partisan terms. They have to move as well.”
But Mr Biden also said he would be willing to cut spending to reach a deal.
Source:Fiilafmonline/BBC
