I don't know when the Republicans in Congress are going to come to the realization that the debt limit pertains to things that have already been decided. If you choose to run a federal budget deficit, then by definition the national debt MUST go up. The fight should be over spending now and in the future and not raising the debt ceiling. That train has left the station for this fiscal year. Playing brinksmanship with the debt ceiling is a pernicious fool's errand.
It's true the debt ceiling will be hit because of cumulative deficits. But I believe the Republicans are trying to use the debt ceiling as a bargaining chip to negotiate federal spending cuts, not as a mechanism to reduce the debt itself. I don't know if it'll work, but I agree with their goal.
ReplyDelete