House to vote Wednesday on raise in debt limit
WASHINGTON (AP) - House leaders on Monday unveiled legislation to permit the government to continue borrowing money through May 18 in order to stave off a first-ever default on U.S. obligations. It is slated for a vote on Wednesday.
The measure marks a change in strategy for House Republicans, who have backed off demands that any extension of the government's borrowing authority be accompanied by stiff spending cuts.
The legislation is also aimed at prodding Senate Democrats to pass a budget after almost four years of failing to do so. It would withhold the pay of lawmakers in either House or Senate if their chamber fails to pass a budget this year. House Republicans have passed budgets for two consecutive years, but the Senate hasn't passed one since President Barack Obama's first year in office.
The current debt limit is $16.4 trillion. The legislation does not set a specific limit; rather it would automatically increase the limit by the amount required to fund U.S. government obligations through May 18.
But that date is not a hard deadline, because the Treasury would retain the limited ability to exercise so-called extraordinary measures and juggle certain accounts to buy limited additional time before a default on U.S. obligations. Such steps could buy several additional weeks beyond May 18.
The measure also contains a "no budget, no pay" provision that withholds pay for lawmakers if the chamber in which they serve fails to pass a congressional budget resolution by April 15. That's a provision designed to press the Senate to pass a budget.
On Sunday, Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said the Senate would do just that and would use it to call for follow-up legislation that would increase revenues.
Under Congress' arcane budget procedures, a congressional budget resolution is a nonbinding measure that tries to set parameters for future legislation setting agency budgets and curbing federal benefit programs like Medicare.
Democrats have generally reacted coolly to the three-month extension, which would take the debt limit issue off the table for several months but leave other choke points in place, including sharp, across-the-board spending cuts that would start to strike the Pentagon and domestic programs alike on March 1 and the possibility of a partial government shutdown with the expiration of a temporary budget measure on March 27.
But failing to meet those deadlines would have far less serious consequences than defaulting on U.S. obligations like payments to bondholders.
"We should not be doing this three months at a time. We should resolve these issues, and we should not be playing games with the debt ceiling," said Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md.
Republicans hope the need to deal with issues like the across-the-board cuts will cause Democrats and Obama to agree to spending cuts. Obama vowed he would not bargain over the debt limit. If the debt cap is not raised, the government would default on its obligations by as early as Feb. 15, Treasury says.
The measure marks a change in strategy for House Republicans, who have backed off demands that any extension of the government's borrowing authority be accompanied by stiff spending cuts.
The legislation is also aimed at prodding Senate Democrats to pass a budget after almost four years of failing to do so. It would withhold the pay of lawmakers in either House or Senate if their chamber fails to pass a budget this year. House Republicans have passed budgets for two consecutive years, but the Senate hasn't passed one since President Barack Obama's first year in office.
The current debt limit is $16.4 trillion. The legislation does not set a specific limit; rather it would automatically increase the limit by the amount required to fund U.S. government obligations through May 18.
But that date is not a hard deadline, because the Treasury would retain the limited ability to exercise so-called extraordinary measures and juggle certain accounts to buy limited additional time before a default on U.S. obligations. Such steps could buy several additional weeks beyond May 18.
The measure also contains a "no budget, no pay" provision that withholds pay for lawmakers if the chamber in which they serve fails to pass a congressional budget resolution by April 15. That's a provision designed to press the Senate to pass a budget.
On Sunday, Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said the Senate would do just that and would use it to call for follow-up legislation that would increase revenues.
Under Congress' arcane budget procedures, a congressional budget resolution is a nonbinding measure that tries to set parameters for future legislation setting agency budgets and curbing federal benefit programs like Medicare.
Democrats have generally reacted coolly to the three-month extension, which would take the debt limit issue off the table for several months but leave other choke points in place, including sharp, across-the-board spending cuts that would start to strike the Pentagon and domestic programs alike on March 1 and the possibility of a partial government shutdown with the expiration of a temporary budget measure on March 27.
But failing to meet those deadlines would have far less serious consequences than defaulting on U.S. obligations like payments to bondholders.
"We should not be doing this three months at a time. We should resolve these issues, and we should not be playing games with the debt ceiling," said Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md.
Republicans hope the need to deal with issues like the across-the-board cuts will cause Democrats and Obama to agree to spending cuts. Obama vowed he would not bargain over the debt limit. If the debt cap is not raised, the government would default on its obligations by as early as Feb. 15, Treasury says.
America's fiscal history is just that.  Mr. Obama is now in his second term. the ball is in his court. he can save America by responsible and intelligent financial management. or he can go down in history as the president who, in his second term, led American over a cliff to unrecoverable financial ruin.
No they are not going to push this another several months down the line...they have firmly shown they will stall stall stall - so it is time to say NO NO NO no spending increase without on paper cuts that WILL NOT BE IGNORED!
The first law that needs passing is an ammendment that says whatever laws, restrictions, etc that Congress and the President put on us equally is put on them. Second, pass an amendment that if they don't balance the budget every year then we re-hold elections every November until we get a Congress and President that will and any current person in office who didn't fix it could never run again. Imagine how they would fix this if fheir jobs were on the line.Â
I don't know. Maybe we should just let these idiots take us over the "cliff," and be done with it. The sooner this sucker crashes, the sooner we can rebuild from scratch. At the rate our "leaders" are going, it won't be long.
What a bunch of bufoons! Until the extremists on both sides are removed, I don't see much progress being made.
The "party of responsibility" refuses to pay for the bills that it voted for. Would some intrepid Republican explain how this is somehow more admirable than racking up a credit card bill and refusing to pay for that?
 @Sutekh You need an economics class..let's put it in terms you might be able to understand. If you owe $160,000 on credit cards (which is what we owe with a bunch of zeros knocked off so you can wrap your head around it), about $5,000 would be your annual interrest payment. You only bring in $29,000 a year in income and you spend $40,300 a year. Now when you owe this much and your credit card is maxed out and you have already budgeted to increase what you owe over the next year from $160,000 to $170,000, do you go and ask for a credit increase from your credit card company or do you start paying your bills off before you go bankrupt? BTW...no credit card company would ever trust you with a limit like that and after you maxed it out they would laugh at you and maybe send you to credit counseling to help you pay it off! Yet you think it is a good idea to keep raising it and spending more? How about you do what most of us had to do over the last 4 years when we lost jobs, income, etc. You cut back and pay your credit cards off! That is what my wife and I had to do when she lost her job. How come we have to do it but the government doesn't?
 @sometimesright  @Sutekh sometimes right -- I'm sure Sutekh understands credit card debt -- you are missing his point, I think.  The "party of responsibility" as he called it got us into a war and made huge tax cuts, which mostly benefited the wealthy -- and that began the major deficit challenge -- but then they refused to want to see tax increases go back to what they were.  You'll recall  how George Bush asked for, and got, the tax reductions, was because of this "surplus", and it should be "given back to the people" to create jobs, etc. -- But, the "surplus" was from the SS fund -- and, of course, it was suppose to have a surplus at the point, with more people paying in than taking out, because the reverse was going to happen once boomers started to retire.... so it made, I'm convinced, a self-fulfilling prophecy, of there isn't the money to cover this, it must be reduced, etc.  (Not that both parties from time to time hadn't borrowed from the SS trust fund)  -but this "surplus" borrowing was so great to incredibly damaged it for boomers -- and, I think it was a goal for those that never believed it should have been there -- that never approved of it since the 30's when it was enacted.  At anyrate, he wasn't literally asking for an explanation about credit card debt, but why that party took what had been balanced by the other party during Clinton tenure, and made huge deficit by reason's mentioned above -- and then once not in office and ecomony was tanking, said we must cut, cut, cut -- and no taxes because "they are the job creators...." Â
Another band-aid.
The Obama presidency will be known to future generations as the moment our debt hit over $20 trillion. I am sick of these politicians who lack the will to curb spending. They are not abusing our tax dollars, those ran out years ago. They are currently spending our grandchildren's tax dollars. The grandchildren that have not been born yet.
@acepaul - But, the Bush presidency (2008) is ALREADY known as the moment our debt hit over $10 Trillion, which in round numbers seems a lot more significant.
 @theMark You need a math class...20 trillion is DOUBLE what 10 trillion is! I can't believe you are not upset about these numbers. Just goes to show that some people could care less the debt they are putting on their children and grandchildren!
@sometimesright - The *point* I'm making is that "future generations" aren't really going to be looking at the point the debt hit $20 trillion; just that $10 trillion seems like more of a "milestone". And, what makes you think these numbers don't bother me?