Debt Ceiling – The GOP’s Latest Weapon of Economic Destruction!

After caving in to the will of the majority of the people on the fiscal cliff vote, Tea Partied Republican congressional members have vowed to take out their revenge using the current debt ceiling as their latest weapon of economic destruction!

So, exactly what is the debt ceiling? The debt ceiling is “simply the maximum amount that the U.S. government can borrow at any given time. Currently the limit is set at $16,394 trillion”. (about.com)

Contrary to Tea Partied Republican politicians and Right Wing propaganda machines, the nation’s current debt did not start with the Obama Administration.  It is an accumulation of our nation’s debt over a number of years – including the Bush 2  Era when the Republican led Congress happily legislated  non funded billions on the invasion of Iraq,  non funded billions on tax cuts for the wealthy, non funded   and deregulated billions on  loopholes for big corporations,  non funded billions on  prescription drug legislation and the like.

Before President Obama took office, “the process of approving (debt limit) increases has largely been a formality that occurred frequently but took place outside of the public eye.”  However, “the political winds began to shift in late 2010, when the Tea Party movement sent a wave of Republicans to Washington with a simple mandate: cut spending and reduce taxes”!  (outside the beltway)

In mid-2011 , Tea Partied Republicans “resisted signing on to the usual debt-limit increase unless Democrats agreed to future spending cuts” holding government subsidized programs such as Medicare, Social Security, Medicaid, and education hostage.

In August, 2011 the debt-ceiling crisis was finally passed at the cost of downgrading our nation’s  international credit rating from a “+A to A, and placing the rating on negative watch (indicating the potential for a further cut.” (economist,com)  

Now we’re in to another year and another debt ceiling war.  

Angered and spiteful about having to save our nation from going over the “fiscal cliff”, Tea Partied Republican congressional  hostage takers have vowed to take revenge.   House Speaker Boehner vowed to “not work with Obama one-on-one”. Republican Senator John Coryn  of Texas came up with the brilliant(?!?!)  idea to “shut down the government” .  Former VP nominee Paul Ryan voted against spending flood relief for Hurricane Sandy victims, but had no problems previously, spending  $162 billion in Midwest flood relief affecting his home state of Wisconsin.  

Here are a handful of 70 spending cuts released by Tea Partied Republican congressional members:

Privatizing or making deep cuts in Social Security

$2 billion from Job training programs

$1 billion from the National Institutes of Health

$755 million from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

$2 million from the Minority Business Development Agency

$1.6 million from the Environmental Protection Agency

$1.7 billion from the General Services Administration Federal Buildings Fund

$74 million from the FBI

$593 million from the Internal Revenue Service

$169 million from nuclear energy

$224 million from Amtrak

Eliminating the fund for Obamacare administrative costs

Eliminating the Corporation for Public Broadcasting

Eliminating  AmeriCorps

According to an article at the washingtonpost.com, this is what will happen if Tea Partied Republicans persist in their unreasonable response to not raising the debt limit they helped create:

1. The government will have to default on about 40 percent of its obligations covering interest on Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, defense spending, education, food stamps and other low-income transfers.
2. The FBI will shut down.
3. People responsible for tracking down loose nukes will lose their jobs.
4. Prisons won’t operate.
5. The court system will close its doors.
6. Tax refunds won’t go out.
7. The Federal Aviation  Administration will go offline.
8. The parks will close.
9. Food safety inspections will cease.
10. The financial market will be in chaos.
11. A spike in the Treasury rate will mean a spike in credit card rates  and  mortgage rates.
12. The U.S. international credit rating will be downgraded, again!
13. Imagine the headline,  “America pays Chinese debt instead of Social Security”!
14. The list goes on and on.

You know what we have to do…

Petition | President Obama: Do Not Allow The GOP To Trade Medicare ...

President Obama: Do Not Allow The GOP To Trade Medicare Cuts For The Debt Ceiling!http://www.change.org/petitions/president-obama-do-not-allow-the-gop-to-trade-medicare-cuts-for-the-debt-ceiling

Petition | Tell the GOP - Hands Off Social Security | Change.orgThank you for signing the petition "Tell the GOP ... a means of voting against raising the debt ceiling without ... budget cuts are meaningless and we ...http://www.change.org/petitions/tell-the-gop-hands-off-social-security

Sources:

What is the debt ceiling and why is everyone in Washington talking about it?

http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2011-04-18/business/35262332_1_debt-limit-budget-debate-pension-funds

This is what will happen if we breach the debt ceiling

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/01/07/this-is-what-would-happen-if-we-breach-the-debt-ceiling/

What is the Debt Ceiling

http://www.outsidethebeltway.com/what-is-the-debt-ceiling/

What is the Debt Ceiling? A Simple Explanation of the Debate and Crisis

http://bonds.about.com/od/Issues-in-the-News/a/What-Is-The-Debt-Ceiling-A-Simple-Explanation-Of-The-Debate-And-Crisis.htm

Lessons of the (2011) Crisis

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/the_big_idea/2011/08/lessons_of_the_crisis.html

US credit rating downgraded (2011 Debt Ceiling Hostage Crisis Result)

http://www.economist.com/blogs/buttonwood/2011/08/debt-ceiling-crisis-1

House GOP Lists $2.5 Trillion in Spending Cuts

http://www.usnews.com/news/washington-whispers/articles/2011/01/20/house-gop-lists-25-trillion-in-spending-cuts

GOTTA VOTE

2014!