US lawmakers hailed the Dalai Lama as a global inspiration as they welcomed him on Thursday at the Capitol, urging US President Barack Obama to defy China and also meet the exiled Tibetan leader.

Members of the US House of Representatives briefly put aside a rancorous debate on taming the US debt to receive the Dalai Lama, a rare figure embraced by both sides of the US political spectrum.

US House Speaker John Boehner, the third highest-ranking US official under the Constitution, said lawmakers spoke to the Dalai Lama about “our shared values not just in Tibet and China, but in the Middle East as well.”