At 10:47 this morning, by near-unanimous consensus, the editors and contributing editors of Green Mountain Daily released the following statement and open letter to our congressional delegation:
The following Editors and Contributing Editors of Green Mountain Daily, after consideration and discussion, do not and cannot in good conscience support the Reid/McConnell U.S. Default bill. The legislation is not, as its sponsors claim, a "compromise" solution to a default crisis manufactured by GOP maneuvering. The bill, in its current form, is not a "compromise" under any reasonable use of that word. The bill accedes to radically extreme Republican Tea Party demands and does so at the expense of government responsibility. The bill does not solve the Republican manufactured default crises. Instead it rewards the Republican Tea Party for their reactionary intransigence, and their unwillingness to take their congressional responsibilities seriously.
At the same time, it is clear that default on our debts is not an option. Executive Branch options available to President Obama to avoid default without congressional approval, while distasteful and unprecedented, would all be preferable to the option currently under consideration. Unilateral action under the 14th amendment would be far preferable to the wholesale dismantling of critical discretionary programs and the crippling of medicare through unsustainable cuts to providers, that would ultimately be triggered under the Reid/McConnell bill. In addition, the destructive consequences of draconian cuts to other critical programs and jobs as our economic recovery is showing signs of failing would be intolerable.
We therefore urge Senator Leahy and Representative Welch to follow the example of Senator Sanders and vote against the McConnell/Reid bill which would be harmful in the extreme to Vermonters, as well as middle and working class families across the country.
BP
Jack McCullough
Eddie "kestrel9000" Garcia
Maggie Gundersen
odum
Sue Prent
Caoimhin Laochdha
greenvtster
JDRyan
mataliandy
NanuqFC
This is every GMD editor and contributing editor save one.
In Vermont, we stand with Senator Sanders.
No deal is better than this deal.....
Senator Bernie Sanders spoke during a rare Saturday session. He made case for President Obama lifting the debt ceiling on his own by invoking a provision of the 14th Amendment. "The Constitution is very clear in saying that the debts of the United States ‘shall not be questioned,' Sanders said. "The president swears an oath to protect and defend the Constitution, and many constitutional scholars believe that the 14th Amendment gives the president the authority and responsibility to pay our debts regardless of the dysfunction in Congress. I think that's just what he should do if he is left with no other way to protect the full faith and credit of the United States." The idea is backed by leading legal scholars and by President Bill Clinton. He said that if he were still in the White House, he would use the amendment and "force the courts to stop me."
That is my personal view. I agree with what is stated here by Senator Sanders.A sviews go,that isn't necessarily that of each of the signatories to the open letter reproduced below...but I feel fairly safe including it here.
Since every GMD admin except one signed the above open letter, I kind of think we're almost all basically on the same page.
We of Green Mountain Daily would ask Senator Leahy and Representative Welch to join Senator Sanders and vote NO on the Reid/McConnell "compromise" bill.