A mere month and a half after realizing that the federal bank account was going to start sending out rubber checks, the Senate has stepped in and narrowly (52-48) passed a bill raising the borrowing limit (every man, woman and child alive now owes a mere $30,000 apiece). From the Associated Press:
The Senate voted Thursday to allow the national debt to swell to nearly $9 trillion, preventing a first-ever default on U.S. Treasury notes.
The vote came a day after Treasury Secretary John Snow warned lawmakers that action was “critical to provide certainty to financial markets that the integrity of the obligations of the United States will not be compromised.”
The debt limit increase is an unhappy necessity _ the alternative would be a disastrous first-ever default on U.S. obligations _ that greatly overshadowed a mostly symbolic, weeklong debate on the GOP’s budget resolution.
Not surprisingly, the Senate was mostly empty during debate, as Democrats were only interested in gleefully bashing the fiscal irresponsibility (“When it comes to deficits, this president owns all the records,” Harry Reid) without offering a fiscally conservative alternative of their own making. And Republicans simply just don’t give a crap.
But anyways, $30,000… better take out a loan.
I post a lot about The national Debt…
It is an absolute embarassment. In 1994 when The Republicans swept to power the Federal Debt was 4.75 trillion dollars…
What have they done?
This is disgusting, but it’s not as bad as we could be. A lot of European countries have about 60% of their GDP expressed in terms of debt. When Bush took over, it was 34% and now it’s 37%, which is plenty dismaying but not as bad as them.
Stuart, I don’t see your math. The official debt (not counting unfunded liabilities) is about $8.3T, and the GDP is running about $12.8T. (http://www.bea.gov/bea/newsrel/gdpnewsrelease.htm). Sounds like a lot more that 37% (say, 65%). How do you get your numbers?
Wow Stuart, that is the best spin I’ve seen to date on the National Debt. Good Job!
Even NPR says it is over 60%:
http://www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/2006/mar/debtgraph3_500.jpg
Personally, I love it. I can’t wait for it to get to 101%. That will be a blast! Call me perverted, but I just want to see how high it can go! It’s not like anything is going to be done about it anyways. Might as well enjoy the ride and laugh when the stupid people are punished for it. Frankly, I like to see people get their just deserts.
It was off a news article I read on CNN.
Well, this does support your position, but still it’s not clear which is the legitimate figure.
Lies, damn lies and statistics…
Let’s get to NH and create an alternate economy with backed currency like the Liberty Dollar. Let them have their debt, we’ll have real value.
http://dollar.freetalklive.com
Another issue the LP is not using to its advantage.
M.H.W.
The LP CAN’T use this issue to their advantage when the party platform advocates DEFAULTING on the national debt!!! I suspect this is why they have decided to stay quiet about this particular issue.
Defaulting on the National Debt is such a stupid idea that I have no idea how anyone of The Platform Committee could ever agree to something like that. The entire National Platform needs to be abolished and re-written by people who want to get Libertarians elected to office.
Stuart you are using the wrong number partner. There is a lot of mis-information put out by the politicians. The current Federal debt is about 8.2 or 8.3 trillion dollars. This figure does not count all of its various unfunded future liabilities; these account for another 70- 75 trillion depending on whose statistics you use…
Ouch…
War is Peace.
Ignorance is Strength.
Deficit Spending is Fiscal Responsibility
I don’t think we should default on our debt, but I sure wish we could make those who did nothing to decrease it pay it.
This is the best collection of economic statistics, taxation statistics, and size of gevernment statistics, with lots of easy to understand graphs and pictures.
http://mwhodges.home.att.net/#health
Current debt = 03/16/2006 $8,271,005,203,336.67
If you think about it this way, we have 729 billion of partying to go before we have to raise it again…should take 1-2 years. No worries.
Michael H. Wilson, you are correct.
I’m using the Federal Debt as one of my key issues in my bid for Congress. Also, balancing the budget in five years without raising taxes.
Bill Wood
http://www.woodforcongress.com