Debt Talks Expose the Politics Hindering Energy-Permitting Fixes

As debt-limit talks come down to the wire, members of Congress and President Joe Biden are also looking for common ground on how to overhaul the national permitting process for big energy projects.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a Republican from California, confirmed on Thursday that permitting reform remained on the negotiating table. But he declined to offer specifics, noting the situation was fluid. “We don’t have an agreement to do anything until everything is agreed to,” he told reporters in the Capitol on Tuesday.

Permitting reform came into the talks because it represents a rare point of bipartisan interest. Both Democratic and Republican politicians are ...