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Human
Events...
Debt
ceiling skyrockets to $16 trillion
by Audrey
Hudson
01/26/2012
The Senate
on Thursday refused to side with House Republicans and block President
Barack
Obama’s request to raise the debt limit $1.2 trillion, clearing the way
for an
automatic increase that will bring the national liability to $16
trillion.
The
procedural vote to block the debt increase was supported by Senate
Republicans
and opposed by Democrats in a mostly party-line vote of 44-52. Sen.
Scott Brown
of Massachusetts was the only Republican to side with Democrats while
two
Democrats voted “no” with Republicans, Sen. Joe Manchin of West
Virginia and
Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska.
“We should
be working together to lower the debt, not having votes to increase
it,” said
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). “But the president must
be
willing to face this crisis head on. He must be willing to acknowledge
how
serious this issue is.”
Since Obama
took office in January 2009, the debt has increased $4.61 trillion,
according
to the Treasury Department.
“More
spending, more debt, fewer jobs -- that’s what we’ve gotten from this
administration, and now they want to make it worse,” McConnell said.
“Americans
are worried and they’re frustrated. Middle class families are doing
without,
why can’t Washington? We’ll, we believe it can,” McConnell said. “So
Republicans today will send a simple message to the White House, no
more blank
checks. Democrats have been in charge of the Senate and the White House
for
three years. They’ve had the time they need to figure this out, they’ve
chosen
the path of blame, instead. They’ve had their chance, they’ve made it
worse --
we must do better.”
Sen. Max
Baucus (D-Mont.), chairman of the
Senate
Finance Committee, said raising the debt limit would not authorize new
spending
or signal an increase in future outlays, although he acknowledged that
the
treasury needs this increase to pay bills for money the federal
government has
already spent.
“The U.S.
would default in the first time in its history,” Baucus said. “It would
send a
message to the world that the U.S. does not keep its promises. We’ve
got to pay
the bills.”
The House
passed the resolution of disapproval last week 239-176 with largely
Republican support.
It is the only option now available to Congress to prevent automatic
debt
increases that are triggered by the Budget Control Act that both
chambers
agreed to in August.
The Budget
Act also created a SuperCommittee to make spending cuts to offset the
debt
increases, but that panel failed to come up with a solution and has
since
dissolved.
Sen. Pat
Toomey (R–PA) said the country is heading towards a fiscal crisis and
now is
not the time for the government to apply for another credit card.
“This is
the sixth time President Obama has asked for an increase in the debt
limit, and
it’s time to force Congress, this administration and the federal
government to
live within their means,” Toomey said.
Republicans
say federal spending is so out-of-control that the total debt is larger
than
the entire economy, and the new request brings the total debt limit to
more
than 108 percent of the gross domestic product.
“Given the
recent experience in Europe, it is disconcerting to hear repeated calls
by the
grow-government-at-all-costs crowd to double down on failed government
initiatives to stimulate the economy by borrowing even more,” said Sen.
Orrin
Hatch (R–Utah). “Rates
are cheap, they
say, so let’s continue riding the debt bubble as far as we can. We know
how
this story ends.”
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