January 22, 2013

RPC Debt Limit Briefing

The Debt Limit: Different This Time

Excerpt: Treasury can take certain “extraordinary actions” to keep the debt limit from affecting government finances for a few weeks or months. To keep spending beyond then, the President will need to ask Congress once again to raise the nation's debt ceiling. On December 31, Secretary Geithner told Congress that he was beginning extraordinary actions to maintain Treasury’s ability to borrow. He did not request a specific debt limit increase…

Credit Agencies Say We Can’t Afford Path We’re On

Excerpt: The debate over the debt limit is not a debate over whether or not the government should pay its bills. The President is trying to spin this debate by saying, “We can't not pay bills that we've already incurred.” But the nation’s credit agencies have pointed out the obvious: without spending cuts, it is guaranteed that the government will be unable to pay its bills at some point. The choice is between making reasonable reforms now or postponing the day of reckoning to whenever markets decide that the U.S. government is no longer worthy of confidence.

A Debt Limit History for the President

Excerpt: The debt limit is the perfect time to debate the nation’s future fiscal condition. If a family hits their credit card limit, sometimes they may need to request an increase in the limit. But they will also have to do the responsible thing and review their past financial decisions and make changes for the future. This is exactly what Congress has done in the past when debating the debt limit…

Obama vs. Obama on the Debt Limit

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Obama Debt Record Harms Next Generation

Excerpt: President Obama’s professed concern for our nation’s children is belied by his actual record on debt. He has increased the national debt by nearly $6 trillion since taking office, has offered no serious solutions to our entitlement crisis, and has even ignored most of the recommendations of his own fiscal commission.

Four Deficit Reduction Options

Excerpt: Deficit reduction must be part of the debate over raising the debt ceiling. As part of that, the White House and Democrats in Congress must abandon their calls for more tax hikes and embrace ways to manage America’s spending. Four options for how that can be done are: 1) Retirement Age, 2) Means Testing, 3) Tax Reform, 4) Chained CPI