Hey, don't look at us.
As the House GOP continues to
chase its tail looking for a leader, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew told Congress the debt-limit deadline has moved up to Nov. 3. By then, the government will need to have raised the $18.1 trillion cap because it will have just $30 billion of cash on hand and "federal bills for a single day sometimes eclipse $60 billion." Yikes! And if the GOP-led Congress fails to raise the ceiling, absolutely nothing good will come of it. Peter Schroeder
reports:
Without a hike, the specter of a default on U.S. obligations looms large — potentially setting the stage for significant market turmoil and dire consequences for America’s financial reputation across the globe.
“The first thing you’ll see is a market reaction,” said Doug Holtz-Eakin, head of the right-leaning American Action Forum and a former director of the Congressional Budget Office. “Then you’ve got dramatic impacts on consumer confidence, the world’s melting down again and they go into an economic fetal position … there’s just no good news there.”
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is engaged in budget talks with the White House, but there is little optimism a deal could be struck in time to act on the debt limit.
And don't look to John Boehner to solve this crisis. Even if he had the guts to try ...
Boehner could face a move from conservatives to remove him as Speaker immediately if he brings a clean bill to raise the debt ceiling to the floor.
The debt ceiling has not yet become a major talking point for GOP presidential candidates. But heaven help us if it does because they are sure to tag Capitol lawmakers as a bunch of sellouts for even contemplating giving the federal government the ability to pay its bills. The next debate is Oct. 28, about a week before the deadline.