As the US government is about to run out of cash, the Democrats and Republicans are still arguing about the debt ceiling instead of raising it

Please be warned that I'm a Norwegian and I'm trying to follow American politics. I'll inevitably make errors, so please tell me if I do.<br><br>As far as I know, the US treasury is about to run out of cash and the Democrats and Republicans are still arguing about raising the debt limit. The Democrats want to raise the debt limit without strings attached, while the Republicans want to cut spending in exchange for raising the debt limit.<br><br>Isn't this completely futile because the Democrats and Republicans have already agreed on the budget of the US government? Surely raising the debt limit isn't a choice between raising the limit or reducing US government spending, but between raising the debt limit or reducing government spending?