Across a variety of national media, we've seen the debt ceiling hostage taking by Republican extremists described as a normal way of doing business. In fact, it's used when those extremists control the Congress and Dems control the White House to bypass the budget and appropriations process to make radical cuts in popular, Dem-backed programs. Here's an excerpt from Steve Benen's take on the problem:
"There were debt ceiling talks in 2011 — though at the time, Barack Obama saw this as an opportunity to engage in budget negotiations, not ransom payments — which participants, including then-Vice President Joe Biden, soon recognized as a messy mistake not to be repeated.
Throughout the remainder of Obama’s presidency, he refused to engage in such discussions. Republicans grudgingly acquiesced and Congress received no treats for agreeing to pay the nation’s bills. During the Trump era, there was no need for debt ceiling negotiations — because Democrats didn’t ask for any. The same was true during George W. Bush’s two terms. [snip]
Let’s not miss the forest for the trees: The Republicans’ 2011 fight was the first time a major American political party used the debt ceiling to threaten to deliberately crash the economy. This year, GOP officials are doing it again. But in 'modern times,' at least in this country, policymakers have steered clear of such extortion tactics.
It’s imperative that observers stop seeing the Republicans’ debt ceiling crises as normal and start seeing them as scandalous.
GOP leaders are threatening to harm Americans on purpose, and to shrug one’s shoulders and see this as routine is to miss not only how U.S. politics has traditionally worked, but also how honorable elected officials are supposed to conduct the people’s business." (our emphasis)
Benen cites a couple of examples, one from the New York Times and another from CNBC, of the media playing this extortion off as a routine function of Government, and not an illegitimate attempt by the far right to get budget concessions through extortion because their arguments can't win in the court of public opinion.
