Pentagon officials warned lawmakers on Thursday that defaulting on the nation's debt would threaten its ability to pay troops and be a boon to China.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told the Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee that failing to raise the debt ceiling would create "substantial risk" for damaging the United States' reputation on the world stage.
"There's just a number of things that we're working with allies and partners on that would come into question as to whether or not we'll be able to execute programs, but most important, this will affect the livelihood of our of our troops and our civilians," Austin said, according to The Hill. "We won't be able to pay people like we should, and I think that's something that China and everybody else can exploit."
Speaking alongside Austin, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Gen. Mark Milley said that a debt default would be exploited by U.S. adversaries like China.
"China right now describes us in their open speeches, etc., as a declining power," Milley said, according to Military.com. "Defaulting on the debt will only reinforce that thought and embolden China and increase risk to the United States."
Their message echoes that of Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, who warned lawmakers last week that China and Russia would likely "look to take advantage of" a federal government default.
Haines said Beijing and Moscow could point to a debt default as evidence of a chaotic U.S. political system that is incapable of "functioning as a democracy."
President Joe Biden is currently at an impasse with House Republicans, led by Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. The president has said he wants a clean debt ceiling bill passed; conservative lawmakers, however, maintain that spending cuts must go along with raising the debt ceiling.
Biden met with congressional leaders at the White House Tuesday, but no agreements were reached about the debt ceiling. Another meeting is scheduled for Friday.
As the gridlock drags on, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has said that the U.S. could be out of cash as soon as June 1.
A default on Washington's obligations would have a devastating effect on global financial markets, with JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon saying that it could create a financial panic similar to what occurred in 2008.
According to Military.com, about $4 billion in military salaries are due to be paid on June 15 and could be affected if the federal government defaults before then, according to an analysis released this week by the Bipartisan Policy Center.
Austin said that military paychecks would be a major casualty of a default.
"What it would mean realistically for us is that we won't, in some cases, be able to pay our troops with any degree of predictability," Austin said, according to The Hill. "And that predictability is really, really important for us. This would have a real impact on the pockets of our troops and our civilians."