In today's Washington Post:
The April 28 news article "Biden reiterates refusal to negotiate on debt limit as pressure mounts"quoted White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre as saying, "Avoiding default is Congress’s responsibility." She nailed it!
It is Congress that is responsible for how much money the government spends. Congress is also responsible for writing the tax laws that control how much money the government brings in. When government spending is more than its income, that is entirely Congress’s responsibility. The debt ceiling is an arbitrary construct created by a law passed by, you guessed it, Congress. At least one part of the original motivation for the debt ceiling was to stiffen Congress’s collective spine to deal with a much smaller debt problem than we have now. Obviously, that idea did not work out.
Now Republicans have weaponized the debt ceiling by threatening to do massive damage to the entire world economy, decrease America’s standing on the world stage and possibly endanger the role of the U.S. dollar as the world’s reserve currency.
My humble suggestion is that President Biden hold firm and not negotiate with extortionists. And if Republicans do follow through on their threats, then just ignore the debt ceiling and honor the debts that Congress has racked up, as the Constitution requires. Then, if you can find any reliable Republican partners, work together responsibly to come up with a plan to deal with the debt. Otherwise, there is always 2024, when we as a country need to kick every single MAGA Republican out of office so our government can get back to actually governing instead of performing to get attention and, of course, campaign contributions.
Randy Maddox, Alexandria
Once again, using the debt ceiling as a hostage in the 2024 budget proess (a budget which the MAGAts haven't bothered to flesh out because the specific cuts they would have to make are politically toxic) is something that only occurs when a Democrat is in the White House. Defaulting on debt already incurred under the full faith and credit of the United States is an unthinkable act of economic terrorism that Republican MAGAts regularly think about as a way of undermining Democratic Presidents and tanking the economy for political gain.
Mr. Maddox's final thought is one we heartily endorse for reasons beyond the current debt ceiling hostage- taking: kick every single MAGA Republican out of office!
