Unfortunately, it is because of Democrats.
Debt ceiling: More Democrats threaten to vote against raising borrowing limit
The tension is the latest illustration of how the tea-party-infused GOP is driving the debate in Washington over federal spending. And it shows how the debt issue is testing the Obama administration’s clout as Democrats, particularly those from politically competitive states, resist White House arguments against setting conditions on legislation to raise the debt ceiling.
The push-back has come in recent days from Sens. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.), chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), a freshman who is running for reelection next year. Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) told constituents during the Easter recess that he would not vote to lift the debt limit without a “real and meaningful commitment to debt reduction.
Democrats like Senators Conrad and Machin are defining the debate instead of the President, using the President's statements against him. Senators Klobuchar, Udall, and McCaskill are not helping matters.
The White House has condemned efforts to attach additional measures to the debt-ceiling issue. Press secretary Jay Carney has called it “a dangerous, risky idea to hold hostage . . . a vote on raising the debt ceiling to any other piece of legislation.”
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Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) signaled this week that he would be willing to negotiate on the terms of the debt-ceiling legislation. He noted his support for a “deficit cap” that would “prove that we’re willing to do something about the debt.”
I am more than willing to criticize WH strategy. But this is a case where the WH is being put between a rock and a hard place. National Democrats are more worried about their poll numbers than the economy, and quite frankly the President's re-election chances. And Progressives allow all of them to get away with it by simply accepting their strategy.
The place where the WH can be criticized is their inability to put their foot down at any point over the last two years against Senate Conserva-Dems, that is if they wanted to.
The deficit commission was a result of a prior threat by Conrad. This was followed by the tax cuts and the budget bill. So now they are in a position that any threat won't be taken seriously, which is why they refuse to go as far as to state they will veto a bill that does not exclusively address the debt ceiling.
The chickens are coming home to roost. Or this was always the plan, which would be worse.