The Debt Ceiling

[smchugh]

In the near future the debt of the United States will reach its approved limit. The raising of the debt ceiling requires a vote by Congress. The current spending of the government will cause this to be reached very soon.

President Obama has stated to Congress that he wasnts a clean bill delivered to him regarding the raising of the debt ceiling. This means that there are no other attachments to the bill such as tax raises or spending cuts.

Although it is important that America's credit standing is upheld, it is equally important that real and responsible action is taken regarding our nation's budget. Simply raising the debt ceiling allows the White House and Demorcratic Senate to spend more. There should be action which acts as proof that the government is moving in the direction of reducing spending and the budget deficit.

What specific actions should be attached to the bill which would ultimately lead to responsible solutions to our current budget deficit problem?

 

[Avatar4321]

Actually, I think t hey've already spent past it.

 

[smchugh]

The debt ceiling is currently set at $14.294 trillion and the debt is currently at 14.287 trillion so there is still a little room to spare.

 

[washamericom]

In the near future the debt of the United States will reach its approved limit. The raising of the debt ceiling requires a vote by Congress. The current spending of the government will cause this to be reached very soon.

President Obama has stated to Congress that he wasnts a clean bill delivered to him regarding the raising of the debt ceiling. This means that there are no other attachments to the bill such as tax raises or spending cuts.

Although it is important that America's credit standing is upheld, it is equally important that real and responsible action is taken regarding our nation's budget. Simply raising the debt ceiling allows the White House and Demorcratic Senate to spend more. There should be action which acts as proof that the government is moving in the direction of reducing spending and the budget deficit.

What specific actions should be attached to the bill which would ultimately lead to responsible solutions to our current budget deficit problem?

how about an attachment to the bill whereby you have to show your birth certificate ?

 

[kyzr]

In the near future the debt of the United States will reach its approved limit. The raising of the debt ceiling requires a vote by Congress. The current spending of the government will cause this to be reached very soon.

President Obama has stated to Congress that he wasnts a clean bill delivered to him regarding the raising of the debt ceiling. This means that there are no other attachments to the bill such as tax raises or spending cuts.

Although it is important that America's credit standing is upheld, it is equally important that real and responsible action is taken regarding our nation's budget. Simply raising the debt ceiling allows the White House and Demorcratic Senate to spend more. There should be action which acts as proof that the government is moving in the direction of reducing spending and the budget deficit.

What specific actions should be attached to the bill which would ultimately lead to responsible solutions to our current budget deficit problem?

how about an attachment to the bill whereby you have to show your birth certificate ?

Like that idea. Riders to include:
1. BO's certified birth certificate
2. Balanced Budget Amendment or equivalent
3. Bill to go after off-shore tax cheats
4. Bill to continue cutting spending (NPR, Planned Parenthood, etc.)
5. Bill to implement a new "Grace Commission" to reduce size & duplication in the government and reduce Medicare fraud.
6. Bill to bring US troops home from Europe
7. Bill to eliminate foreign aid
8. Bill to tie Corporate Welfare to job creation
9. Bill to make utilities pay for wasted fuel costs instead of passing costs for wasted fuel to consumers. (Japan wastes 10% the US wastes 70%)

 

[JimH52]

It will be interesting to see if the GOP tries to throw the Government into default. What would happen to the interest on the debt if we slipped from AAA to AA. That would cause the interest rate to increase and, of course, the debt to increase. Not unlike a tax break for the wealthy, I would say. Let's see what happens.

 

[Ernie S.]

We more or less have to raise it if we are to honor our obligations, but I would like to see spending reduced by an equal or greater amount.
Raise the debt ceiling 100 billion? Cut 100 billion somewhere.

 

[kyzr]

It will be interesting to see if the GOP tries to throw the Government into default. What would happen to the interest on the debt if we slipped from AAA to AA. That would cause the interest rate to increase and, of course, the debt to increase. Not unlike a tax break for the wealthy, I would say. Let's see what happens.

The problem is the DC whores like to spend money, and the only money left would be the top 1% of incomes that own 90% of everything.

 

[JFK_USA]

Have to pass it. Think the economy is bad now? Don't raise the debt ceiling, and our country goes into the tank.

 

[kyzr]

Have to pass it. Think the economy is bad now? Don't raise the debt ceiling, and our country goes into the tank.

Its like the US is on a train speeding toward a bridge that's out, and it has a bomb fastened to the brake, you need to slow the train, but not too fast or too slow. We need to cut spending and reduce the Debt to save the economy. So the debt ceiling needs to be raised, but to a controlled level with lots of spending cuts, such as Paul Ryan's budget (with Clinton era tax increases thrown in)

 

[LordBrownTrout]

Man, I'd love to have my own currency presses, set my cc limits, max them out, reset my debt limit, print millions more, keep on spending, be irresponsible. That must be great fun and one helluva ride until it all comes crashing down.

 

[Zoom-boing]

Congress is forced to increase the debt limit every several years

WH: Obama regrets vote against raising debt limit - Yahoo! News


It's the spending, stupid.

Without major cuts in spending it will continue until we implode.


Side note: Obama was against it before he was for it. As were R's when D's were in charge, right?

Round and round and round she goes, where she'll stop nobody knows.

 

[AquaAthena]

From 2006:


[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mZ39Zet97Q]YouTube - "O" the Debt Ceiling[/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELkbDdPeL7I&NR=1]YouTube - Harry Reid in '06: Raising debt limit last thing we should do, will weaken country, hurt economy[/ame]

 

[Toronado3800]

In the near future the debt of the United States will reach its approved limit. The raising of the debt ceiling requires a vote by Congress. The current spending of the government will cause this to be reached very soon.

President Obama has stated to Congress that he wasnts a clean bill delivered to him regarding the raising of the debt ceiling. This means that there are no other attachments to the bill such as tax raises or spending cuts.

Although it is important that America's credit standing is upheld, it is equally important that real and responsible action is taken regarding our nation's budget. Simply raising the debt ceiling allows the White House and Demorcratic Senate to spend more. There should be action which acts as proof that the government is moving in the direction of reducing spending and the budget deficit.

What specific actions should be attached to the bill which would ultimately lead to responsible solutions to our current budget deficit problem?

What did you say? Raising the debt ceiling allows Ronald Reagan and the two Bush's to spend more?

Ok, now that we each got in pointless jabs which only serve to eliminate discourse.

I say the budget bill was the chance to take action then there will be another chance with next year's budget bill.

Nothing exciting or radical needs to be done. A few cuts here and there. Lets hit a three percent decrease in spending and a one percent increase in revenue.

I propose cuts in military activity, a hold at the current level of farm aid (no inflation adjustment), and...... lets pick some more.

To increase revenue I believe it is time to raise the base tax rate on the 100k plus earners. Lets throw in a "loophole" or two where if they really are investing in what's good for America their taxes do not go up. We should hold an additional increase on the Social Security taxes by removing the limit on contributions entirely, help fix that problem.

Oh, and I believe it is tariff time on some imports. All developing countries, meaning those w/o nuclear power are exempt from my new tariffs. We will just adjust the cost of imports up as if they had been made someplace with our EPA and minimum wage standards.

NO MORE MARSHALL PLAN lol

 

[Zona]

In the near future the debt of the United States will reach its approved limit. The raising of the debt ceiling requires a vote by Congress. The current spending of the government will cause this to be reached very soon.

President Obama has stated to Congress that he wasnts a clean bill delivered to him regarding the raising of the debt ceiling. This means that there are no other attachments to the bill such as tax raises or spending cuts.

Although it is important that America's credit standing is upheld, it is equally important that real and responsible action is taken regarding our nation's budget. Simply raising the debt ceiling allows the White House and Demorcratic Senate to spend more. There should be action which acts as proof that the government is moving in the direction of reducing spending and the budget deficit.

What specific actions should be attached to the bill which would ultimately lead to responsible solutions to our current budget deficit problem?

Didnt the right already try this lame threat? its a joke. Its like you guys have no idea what the hell you are talking about and the ones on the right who do, uses you dolts.

 

[WillowTree]

It's like some wise old soul said on the TV this morning. "Why have a debt ceiling at all if you are just going to keep raising it?" Come to think of it, it is pretty damn stupid don't you agree?

 

[SFC Ollie]

In the near future the debt of the United States will reach its approved limit. The raising of the debt ceiling requires a vote by Congress. The current spending of the government will cause this to be reached very soon.

President Obama has stated to Congress that he wasnts a clean bill delivered to him regarding the raising of the debt ceiling. This means that there are no other attachments to the bill such as tax raises or spending cuts.

Although it is important that America's credit standing is upheld, it is equally important that real and responsible action is taken regarding our nation's budget. Simply raising the debt ceiling allows the White House and Demorcratic Senate to spend more. There should be action which acts as proof that the government is moving in the direction of reducing spending and the budget deficit.

What specific actions should be attached to the bill which would ultimately lead to responsible solutions to our current budget deficit problem?

I don't know what should be attached to it, But I do hope that Boehner sticks to his guns and tells Obama to shit in one hand and want in the other.

 

[kyzr]

It's like some wise old soul said on the TV this morning. "Why have a debt ceiling at all if you are just going to keep raising it?" Come to think of it, it is pretty damn stupid don't you agree?

No I don't. I agree that its better to pay as you go, like with a Balanced Budget Amendment, don't you agree???

 

[Londoner]

Reagan raised the debt ceiling to pay for corrupt flukes like Star Wars.

(didn't hear a peep)

Bush Raised it to pay for 2 wars, Medicare D (a giveaway to big pharma), and tax cuts to billionaires.

(didn't hear a peep)

When the 2012 Republican president raises the debt ceiling to pay for the War on Terrorism

(we won't hear a peep)

The problem with the current political debate is that American voters gets his information from corporate captured media sources.

The debt ceiling has to be raised because the major earners of profit -- the corporations who get subsidies and bailouts from government -- don't pay taxes.

The American government and the American media have been captured by mega-corporations. They are getting rid of the middle class in order to bestow dynastic wealth on a small cadre of owners and shareholders. They pit average Americans against each other while they loot the country.

Ronald Reagan protected American car makers from foreign competition in the early 80s -- he imposed limitations on free trade; he was an ol' timey protectionist when he needed to be. [Ross Perot contra-NAFTA anyone?] Today Reagan would be considered a socialist. Reagan protected the big 3 because he wanted to keep American jobs. Why? Because without the middle class consumer, there would be no American economy.

America is committing financial suicide by letting GOP corporate functionaries undermine the very programs that enabled middle class consumption. The government used to prevent the concentration of wealth in too few hands - by taxing the very top in order to make sure the middle class was solvent enough to consume and drive the economy. America's consumption economy was built on the premise that hard workers would have enough financial security to consume. This is why Social Security and Medicare were so vital -- because these programs, by taking mom and dad off the books, enabled middle class families to consume. (The current GOP is ripping at the very fabric that sustained middle class consumption. They are trapped in the dogmatic echo chamber of dated ideas. In the 80s, after 30 years of regulatory increases and high taxation, taking care of the suppliers made sense -- there was room to lighten their load and realize some efficiency gains. But the instruction manual is different when you've had 30 years of deregulation, globalization, and tax cuts. We have completely destroyed middle class jobs & benefits, and with these things we have undermined the very demand which drives consumption, yet we are monomaniacally pursuing supply side policies. Given how much money corporations are sitting on, this is insane. The problem is not that suppliers don't have sufficient capital to invest; it's that there is no consumer to consume. And what is the GOP answer to this? Make even more draconian cuts to the middle class, the further undermining their ability to consume)

[We were told that if the top was not taxed, they would invest and add jobs. This turned out to be false. They created speculative casino capitalism instead. They created monopolies where costs rise and service/quality decreases - the opposite of what was promised in 1980. They used their extra money to buy politicians and oil futures. Why on earth would they invest and add jobs if they no longer paid their workers enough to consume?]

Capital got tired of supporting an expensive, entitlement-fed middle class. They yearned for the cheap sweat shop labor found in dictator-lead, freedom hating countries. So they shipped jobs to sweat shops, and the middle class died. And now we wonder why the economy is dead. There is no consumer. For God's sake, it got so bad that we even had to hawk our houses. The middle class is out of jobs and credit. The game is over.

The middle class is what defined America against the 3rd world and the Soviet Union, where you had a small wealthy elite surrounded by massive poverty (aka cheap labor with no political power). Reagan, Clinton, and Bush got rid of the middle class by giving capitalists 3rd world labor in America. This was the point of the Reagan Revolution. Every time you people undermine a middle class entitlement, you undermine the ability of average consumers to buy things - and you ensure the economy will never recover. You don't understand the contract that the postwar middle class was founded upon. It was not founded upon monopolies and ultra cheap labor. We have become the 3rd world. We have a decedent wealthy elite surrounded by scared, confused, powerless, manipulated serfs who are strategically distracted by wedge issues. This country has never been richer. Corporations are doing better than ever. They are sitting on more cash than at any time in the last 20 years. The country is awash in money. The problem is that it is locked up in a very small number of hands. IT NEVER TRICKLED DOWN.

(morons. you got punk'd by voodoo economics)

You know not what you do.

 

[bripat9643]

In the near future the debt of the United States will reach its approved limit. The raising of the debt ceiling requires a vote by Congress. The current spending of the government will cause this to be reached very soon.

President Obama has stated to Congress that he wasnts a clean bill delivered to him regarding the raising of the debt ceiling. This means that there are no other attachments to the bill such as tax raises or spending cuts.

Although it is important that America's credit standing is upheld, it is equally important that real and responsible action is taken regarding our nation's budget. Simply raising the debt ceiling allows the White House and Demorcratic Senate to spend more. There should be action which acts as proof that the government is moving in the direction of reducing spending and the budget deficit.

What specific actions should be attached to the bill which would ultimately lead to responsible solutions to our current budget deficit problem?

Don't raise the debt ceiling - ever. When Congress can't borrow money any longer, it will learn to live within its means.