The Aug. 2 debt ceiling deadline is holding firm. The Treasury Department said Friday morning that its latest estimates still show that’s the date the government will exhaust its ability to pay all of its bills, unless Congress agrees to raise the total amount that the United States can borrow.

“Secretary Geithner urges Congress to avoid the catastrophic economic and market consequences of a default crisis by raising the statutory debt limit in a timely manner,” the department said in a statement issued in the name of Mary Miller, the assistant secretary for financial markets.

Congressional Republicans say they will increase the borrowing limit only if Democrats agree to a plan to reduce the federal deficit. Democrats say any such plan must include revenue increases. The two sides have been locked in a stand-off for several months. The White House now is warning that a deal must be reached by mid-July to leave enough time for the necessary legislation to be written and passed into law.

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