The U.S. government is expected to hit the $14.294 trillion debt ceiling Monday, setting in motion an uncertain, 11-week political scramble to avoid a default.The Treasury Department plans to announce Monday it will stop issuing and reinvesting government securities in certain government pension plans, part of a series of steps designed to delay a default until Aug. 2.
The Treasury's moves buy time for the White House and congressional leaders to reach a deficit-reduction agreement that could clear the way for enough lawmakers to vote to raise the amount of money Congress allows the nation to borrow.
Gene Sperling, director of the National Economic Council, said reaching the debt ceiling "should be a warning bell to the political system that it's time to get serious about preserving our full faith and credit." The Obama administration says a default would tip the U.S. back into a financial crisis.
But meanwhile, even as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce lobbies them to regain a grip on their sanity, Republicans are doing nothing, pretending that the debt limit is no big deal at all.
Speaking of the do-nothing House Republicans, today's Politico poll offers insight on how advocates of raising the debt ceiling (aka rational people) should frame the issue, despite the unpopularity of raising the debt limit. Here's the question they asked:
As you may know, the federal government has a limit on how much debt it can incur. The Treasury Secretary estimates that this limit will be reached in August. Exceeding this limit requires a vote of approval from Congress. If Congress does not approve an increase in this limit, the US could default on its debts and be unable to pay its creditors. Which of the following best describes the implications you believe will occur if Congress does NOT vote to raise the debt limit: (ROTATE CHOICES) It will be disastrous to the U.S. economy, OR It will not have a serious impact on the U.S. economy
56% said disastrous while 32% said it wouldn't have a serious impact. Given that large majorities have generally said they oppose raising the debt limit, I have to think that the numbers in this case are a result of question wording, and the key thing about this question wording is that instead of focusing on the unpopular thing (adding debt) it focuses on the implications of Congress failing to act.
That not only keeps the focus on why the debt ceiling needs to be lifted, it describes it as something that Congress might be dragging its feet on. And if there's one thing that's less popular than adding more debt, it's politicians in Congress?specifically, the new House majority.
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