Sen. Demint says he will filibuster debt ceiling vote

[theDoctorisIn]

Did the US declare bankruptcy in 1967? Did the economy collapse? Did the world come to an end?

The debt ceiling was raised twice in 1967. Once in March, and again in June. I'm not sure what you're talking about.

Gee, I have no idea. I must have made it all up.

Or maybe not.

Ocala Star-Banner - Google News Archive Search

Your newspaper article said they had until June 30, 1967 to raise the ceiling... your article is dated June 8th.

Congress raised the debt ceiling to 358 Billion on June 30th.
Debt Ceiling Or Statutory Debt Limit, US Treasury:1961-71

 

[Mr Liberty]

The extent that people don't understand economics is baffling to me.

Does anyone actually know what would happen if the debt ceiling isn't raised?

From where are you going to cut 1.7 Trillion dollars out of the budget? That's more than Medicare/caid, and Social Security combined.

It is really quite simple as to what would happen. The economy would shrink by over ten percent overnight. The resulting ripple effect would cause tax revenues to fall further, making the federal government basically inoperable, and as millions of Americans lost their jobs, the unemployment rate would continue to increase dramatically, banks would begin to fail as millions of Americans would default on their mortgages, and the money lost couldn't even be covered by the FDIC. The stock market would completely crash. How long and far the ripple would continue, and just how devastating it would be is hard to say. More likely than not, the entire US economy would shrink by 50%. Those who were wealthy would be no longer, and the country would be completely tapped out.

Local governments would also become inoperable, crime would soar and the country would become a living hell for most. Riots would ensue and at some point there would likely be a military takeover. Democracy as we know it would end. Sound too far fetched?

Reasonable description of what is coming if we don't cut spending and stop debasing the dollar.

 

[theDoctorisIn]

Could I possibly be talking about the time it was not? Should I also mention the time it wasn't raised under Nixon? Or the various other times it was not raised?

Link? I can't find anything.

Sorry, my connection must have had gas.

It happens. There have been plenty of times when I typed up a huge response, only to realize that my questions had been answered in the time it took to write it out.

 

[Navy1960]

The Treasury’s regular methods of financing federal activities or meeting
government obligations are hindered when federal debt nears its legal limit. If the
limit prevents the Treasury from issuing new debt to manage short-term cash flows
or to finance an annual deficit, the government may be unable to obtain the cash
needed to pay its bills or it may be unable to invest the surpluses of designated
government accounts (federal trust funds) in federal debt as generally required by
law.
http://fpc.state.gov/documents/organization/105193.pdf

Not to metion that the "Dollar" is still the worlds currency and any effort by Sen. DeMint to gain favor with portions of the party by holding up the debt ceiling shows his limited knowledge on the subject. If Sen. DeMint believes that holding up the Debt Ceiling or for that matter not approving it will somehow lower our nations debt he is sadly mistaken. In fact if we as a nation are unable to meet our obligations, guess what, debt goes up not down. So I would suggest that like George W. Bush did in 2006 that Sen. DeMint, quietly do the same and then go to work on the debt without the partisan talk.

 

[Zander]

The fear-mongering over this issue is absurd. If the debt ceiling is not raised, the government will still be able to operate. It will simply be forced to live within it's means- that means cuts, lots of them. They can refinance the existing debt, but can no longer issue new debt - the credit card limit has been reached. It is what millions of people face every month.

We can start by selling off our overseas military bases and bringing our troops home- drones are cheaper and more effective. Then we can end all foreign aid. We can layoff every federal employee for 2-3 days per month; close parks etc....We can do many, many things to bring this shit under control. We must make the hard choices.

For all you bleeding heart liberals that simply cannot fathom a (gasp!!) spending cut - just pretend we needed to cut spending so we could all have a pet unicorn, or to fund Obamacare!!

The government needs to live within their means. Seriously, the only way we ever get anything done in this country is when there is a major fucking crisis. Republicans need to follow Rahm's advice and not let this one go to waste.....I seriously hope DeMint has the sack to do it.

So you cut overseas military bases, foreign aid, fulough federal workers for a few days a month, and close all the National parks. Still need to cut about a trillion dollars more to balance the budget.

Ok, we'll follow the Obama plan. Do nothing. ......Fucking idiots.

 

[Provocateur]

The extent that people don't understand economics is baffling to me.

Does anyone actually know what would happen if the debt ceiling isn't raised?

From where are you going to cut 1.7 Trillion dollars out of the budget? That's more than Medicare/caid, and Social Security combined.

Obama has bloated the budget so grotesquely in three years, it will not be the end of the world.

Listening and reading several economist on the matter, they say that the apocalyptic claims are highly overrated.

 

[Modbert]

Ok, we'll follow the Obama plan. Do nothing. ......Fucking idiots.

What a immature child you are. He merely pointed out that for all your huffing and puffing about making the hard choices, you couldn't even make a real hard dent in what you want to see happen. Nobody here is saying do nothing, it's pretty sad on your part to misrepresent what everyone who has responded to you has said.

Though I expect nothing less from someone who is conceited enough to quote himself in his profile. Instead of having another temper tantrum, why not go actually think about what else we can cut?

 

[Provocateur]

The fear-mongering over this issue is absurd. If the debt ceiling is not raised, the government will still be able to operate. It will simply be forced to live within it's means- that means cuts, lots of them. They can refinance the existing debt, but can no longer issue new debt - the credit card limit has been reached. It is what millions of people face every month.

We can start by selling off our overseas military bases and bringing our troops home- drones are cheaper and more effective. Then we can end all foreign aid. We can layoff every federal employee for 2-3 days per month; close parks etc....We can do many, many things to bring this shit under control. We must make the hard choices.

For all you bleeding heart liberals that simply cannot fathom a (gasp!!) spending cut - just pretend we needed to cut spending so we could all have a pet unicorn, or to fund Obamacare!!

The government needs to live within their means. Seriously, the only way we ever get anything done in this country is when there is a major fucking crisis. Republicans need to follow Rahm's advice and not let this one go to waste.....I seriously hope DeMint has the sack to do it.

In honor of the upcoming debate, I have decided to create a sig which all of us can greatly appreciate.

Like it?

 

[Zander]

The fear-mongering over this issue is absurd. If the debt ceiling is not raised, the government will still be able to operate. It will simply be forced to live within it's means- that means cuts, lots of them. They can refinance the existing debt, but can no longer issue new debt - the credit card limit has been reached. It is what millions of people face every month.

We can start by selling off our overseas military bases and bringing our troops home- drones are cheaper and more effective. Then we can end all foreign aid. We can layoff every federal employee for 2-3 days per month; close parks etc....We can do many, many things to bring this shit under control. We must make the hard choices.

For all you bleeding heart liberals that simply cannot fathom a (gasp!!) spending cut - just pretend we needed to cut spending so we could all have a pet unicorn, or to fund Obamacare!!

The government needs to live within their means. Seriously, the only way we ever get anything done in this country is when there is a major fucking crisis. Republicans need to follow Rahm's advice and not let this one go to waste.....I seriously hope DeMint has the sack to do it.

Hahahahahaha... Foreign aid??? Parks?!? Hahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok man, hahaha, let's cut off all all foreign aid ($47 billion) and the entire National Park Service (a WHOOPIN' $3 billion). Ok, so we've got $50 billion down (along with 23,000 jobs as a bonus).

Let's do away with other useless crap like the Bureau of Indian Affairs (Injuns? Though we wiped them all out! 2.4 billion, 8100 jobs), the Bureau of Land Management (900 millon, 10000 jobs), the Fish and Wildlife Services (jesus christ, do we really need that? 2.3 billion, 8000 jobs), the Geological Survey (studying natural hazards? gimme a break, 1.1 billion and 9000 jobs shed).

Awesome! A whooping extra 6.7 billion dollars for a low 35,100 extra unemployed. And we can keep going on and on and on. Hey, why not just eliminate the entire Department of Energy? There's 24 billion off the debt and 100,000+ jobs down the toilet. Or what about the Department of Commerce? I mean, "promoting economic growth" is such a pansy liberal idea. Let's do away with it - $10 billion and another 43,000 jobs.

We've already erased 90 billion dollars from the debt and 200,000 new unemployed, done away with all and every public park, indian reservations, any regulation of marine life and resources, any regulation of nuclear power or energy resource management, any agency coordinating investment for growth.

And all that for a MASSIVE 0.006% decrease in the national debt!!!

Let's cut off the Department of Agriculture and DOUBLE our gains... only ~99.86% left of debt once we get rid of those 105,000 jobs and any support for agricultural production or food security. Oh but let's not forget the closing down of overseas bases... Rumsfeld said back in the day that the government could save $6billion by closing around 100 bases, you wanna close all of them (~1000), so let's say $60 billion. Another nice couple of percentage points of a percentage point whittled down.

ALL of this together would not cover even a SINGLE year of interest payments on current debt.

Too bad there's not MORE parks to make up all that rest of difference!! You know, what I can't believe is how those retards over in Portugal and Greece didn't hire your consulting services to avoid default.

Cuz the heart of the matter is the fact that without the debt ceiling being raised, what is going to occur is a default on US debt. What it does come down to is effectively WORSE than the government shut-down that could've just occurred. What DeMint and other extremist radicals are proposing is putting the US government in a position where it will have to choose between laying off a couple of million people (directly) AND cutting off half of the government (with all its implications), or forcing the US to default on its debt. You're basically proposing that the United States choke itself.

But ok, in your point of view, government is totally useless and it SHOULD lay off its workforce and slash itself in half. Alright. Do you really trust them? Do you really think they will do it? Do you really want to have the option of a default, which is a very real possibility if the ceiling's not raised? Because not even the most fervent, ultra-conservative Republican Obama-hating birther could possibly deny what would happen if the US defaults. I mean, literally, a US default, with no fear of sounding like an alarmist, would be absolutely catastrophic on a BIBLICAL scale. We're talking about the end of the world as I've known it during my 22 years on this planet. We're delving into fire-and-brimstone bunker-and-shotgun territory there, and nobody can deny that.

My post was not designed to be a "CURE-ALL" for every fiscal problem we face. It was a starting point with a few ideas. A default is not the end goal- but a wake up call is desperately needed.

We can do many other things to get the budget under control and none are draconian "fire and brimstone" end of the world scenarios. If the debt ceiling were not raised the govt would have around 2 months of operating capital. During that time they would be forced to look at other ways to keep the government operating. They would be forced to man-up and cut the thousands of useless programs that they have no business being involved in. Forced to face reality. It doesn't need to be all spending cuts either. We can also look at the revenue side as well - I like the idea of a "national sales tax" dedicated to paying off the national debt.

If the debt ceiling were not raised it would not be the end of the world scenario you are describing. It would be a reality check. We've watched government spending double in 10 years. It's unsustainable.

We need to send a message : The credit card limit has been reached. No more soup for you.

 

[Zona]

Republican senator, Jim Demint, said today that he's willing to filibuster the upcoming debt ceiling vote. And he doesn't seem to care that it would likely hurt Republicans politically.

Jim DeMint Prepared To Filibuster Debt Ceiling Vote

Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) signaled he's prepared to filibuster a looming vote to raise the debt ceiling during an appearance on the "Laura Ingraham Show" on Thursday, The Hill reports.

"We're going to filibuster it," said the conservative senator while speaking on the radio program, according to Greenville Online. "You have to do everything you can to keep [Democrats] from raising the debt ceiling because that will force them to do things like balance the budget."

Meanwhile, the South Carolina senator didn't mince words in addressing what raising the debt ceiling could ultimately mean for members of his own party. When asked on Ingraham's program if the impending vote to raise the deficit limit could be Republicans' "Waterloo" in the next election cycle, he responded, "If it is, then let it be."

his is all such bullshit.

Obama better not cave in to this nonesense. He KNOWS the ceiling will be raised and please, please do not give them ANYTHING.

 

[Provocateur]

Government duplication wastes billions: GAO report | Reuters

 

[Provocateur]

Republican senator, Jim Demint, said today that he's willing to filibuster the upcoming debt ceiling vote. And he doesn't seem to care that it would likely hurt Republicans politically.

Jim DeMint Prepared To Filibuster Debt Ceiling Vote

Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) signaled he's prepared to filibuster a looming vote to raise the debt ceiling during an appearance on the "Laura Ingraham Show" on Thursday, The Hill reports.

"We're going to filibuster it," said the conservative senator while speaking on the radio program, according to Greenville Online. "You have to do everything you can to keep [Democrats] from raising the debt ceiling because that will force them to do things like balance the budget."

Meanwhile, the South Carolina senator didn't mince words in addressing what raising the debt ceiling could ultimately mean for members of his own party. When asked on Ingraham's program if the impending vote to raise the deficit limit could be Republicans' "Waterloo" in the next election cycle, he responded, "If it is, then let it be."

his is all such bullshit.

Obama better not cave in to this nonesense. He KNOWS the ceiling will be raised and please, please do not give them ANYTHING.

Oh Look. The teenage liberal has joined.

Like my sig?

 

[Zona]

Republican senator, Jim Demint, said today that he's willing to filibuster the upcoming debt ceiling vote. And he doesn't seem to care that it would likely hurt Republicans politically.

his is all such bullshit.

Obama better not cave in to this nonesense. He KNOWS the ceiling will be raised and please, please do not give them ANYTHING.

Oh Look. The teenage liberal has joined.

Like my sig?

Love the sig. Now back it up with what Obama said about his mistake there. I dare ya.

Grown folks are talking here son. Grow up, take a time out and then come back with your tail between your legs and beg for forgiveness.



Now, back to the debt ceiling being raised. Please try to have your shit together when this is said and done and again, let us know I was right. IT WILL BE RAISED when all is said and done....just like the bullshit "government shutdown" threat you idiots threatened us with.

Its all bullshit little man.

 

[Provocateur]

his is all such bullshit.

Obama better not cave in to this nonesense. He KNOWS the ceiling will be raised and please, please do not give them ANYTHING.

Oh Look. The teenage liberal has joined.

Like my sig?

Love the sig. Now back it up with what Obama said about his mistake there. I dare ya.

Grown folks are talking here son. Grow up, take a time out and then come back with your tail between your legs and beg for forgiveness.



Now, back to the debt ceiling being raised. Please try to have your shit together when this is said and done and again, let us know I was right. IT WILL BE RAISED when all is said and done....just like the bullshit "government shutdown" threat you idiots threatened us with.

Its all bullshit little man.

Too bad Obama said what he feels about raising the debt ceiling. That he now claims it was a "political vote" and he now feels differently means nothing.

I endorse Obama's thought on the debt ceiling. E x a c t l y like he said it.

 

[theDoctorisIn]

The extent that people don't understand economics is baffling to me.

Does anyone actually know what would happen if the debt ceiling isn't raised?

From where are you going to cut 1.7 Trillion dollars out of the budget? That's more than Medicare/caid, and Social Security combined.

Obama has bloated the budget so grotesquely in three years, it will not be the end of the world.

Listening and reading several economist on the matter, they say that the apocalyptic claims are highly overrated.

So where are you going to cut 1.7 Trillion dollars?

 

[Dont Taz Me Bro]

So where are you going to cut 1.7 Trillion dollars?

Military, Social Security, and Medicare. It has to be done.

What we really need is another "Gang of 14" in the Senate, a bipartisan group who can iron out a plan to rein in entitlements, eliminate all the other crap our government blows money on, reform the tax code, and balance the budget.

Instead we have 100 children and the president demonizing each other and bickering back and forth hoping to score political points.

 

[theDoctorisIn]

So where are you going to cut 1.7 Trillion dollars?

Military, Social Security, and Medicare. It has to be done.

What we really need is another "Gang of 14" in the Senate, a bipartisan group who can iron out a plan to rein in entitlements, eliminate all the other crap our government blows money on, reform the tax code, and balance the budget.

Instead we have 100 children and the president demonizing each other and bickering back and forth hoping to score political points.

Well, the total Military budget is 800 billion. Same with Medicare/caid, and Social Security.

So which do you want to eliminate completely, and which 2 do you just want to half?

Or do you think that all of those should be cut by 1/3?

 

[Zander]

The Democrats response to all spending cuts: It can't be done.
The Republican response to all tax increases: It can't be done.

Do both and shut the fuck up about it.

 

[Epsilon Delta]

My post was not designed to be a "CURE-ALL" for every fiscal problem we face. It was a starting point with a few ideas. A default is not the end goal- but a wake up call is desperately needed.

We can do many other things to get the budget under control and none are draconian "fire and brimstone" end of the world scenarios. If the debt ceiling were not raised the govt would have around 2 months of operating capital. During that time they would be forced to look at other ways to keep the government operating. They would be forced to man-up and cut the thousands of useless programs that they have no business being involved in. Forced to face reality. It doesn't need to be all spending cuts either. We can also look at the revenue side as well - I like the idea of a "national sales tax" dedicated to paying off the national debt.

If the debt ceiling were not raised it would not be the end of the world scenario you are describing. It would be a reality check. We've watched government spending double in 10 years. It's unsustainable.

We need to send a message : The credit card limit has been reached. No more soup for you.

I see what you are saying, but I'll reiterate the problem: "During that time they would be forced to look at other ways to keep the government operating. They would be forced to man-up and cut the thousands of useless programs that they have no business being involved in."

The problem here is that you assume they'll be "forced" to cut (debatably) useless programs and figure out some way of keeping the government operating. What I'm saying is that it's perfectly within the realm of possibility that they don't, that they won't find a way to keep the government operating and that they'll basically be forced to default - especially because, as you're saying above, one side refuses to cut spending and the other refuses to raise taxes. The bad part is the even if they did, it would undoubtedly be a terrible rush job and destroy any hope of recovery from the economy.

In any case, it's irrelevant because the debt ceiling will be raised. The main problem here is what comes after that - they are going to have to compromise, and they will have to raise taxes and focus on reducing the cost of the big-ticket stuff instead of getting quagmired in entirely irrelevant cuts like parks or foreign aid. Just bringing the tax rates (income, estate, investment) back to Clinton-era levels (not for the <$250,000) would shave off a couple of hundred billion in the next 3-4 years, and an additional hundred billion with a Millionaire's Tax and raising the payroll tax cap so it covers 90% of taxable income again (up from 80% that it has fallen to by not keeping up with inflation). The Pentagon can easily shave off at least 200 billion dollars in bloat, and negotiated Medicare drug prices at least a couple of hundred billion over the next 10 years.

They just gotta keep all the options on the table.

 

[Gadawg73]

The fear-mongering over this issue is absurd. If the debt ceiling is not raised, the government will still be able to operate. It will simply be forced to live within it's means- that means cuts, lots of them. They can refinance the existing debt, but can no longer issue new debt - the credit card limit has been reached. It is what millions of people face every month.

We can start by selling off our overseas military bases and bringing our troops home- drones are cheaper and more effective. Then we can end all foreign aid. We can layoff every federal employee for 2-3 days per month; close parks etc....We can do many, many things to bring this shit under control. We must make the hard choices.

For all you bleeding heart liberals that simply cannot fathom a (gasp!!) spending cut - just pretend we needed to cut spending so we could all have a pet unicorn, or to fund Obamacare!!

The government needs to live within their means. Seriously, the only way we ever get anything done in this country is when there is a major fucking crisis. Republicans need to follow Rahm's advice and not let this one go to waste.....I seriously hope DeMint has the sack to do it.

Who is going to buy our overseas military bases? We don't own them.