Told You So!

This debt ceiling nonsense could easily have been prevented

The following is the transcript of my troop deployment (i.e. ending rant) from episode 81 of my news podcast The Mind Killer. If you like it, please consider subscribing to the podcast

Well, folks, the debt ceiling is getting close to causing a default. We started something called “extraordinary measures” months ago, which just means that’s when we passed the theoretical time when we didn’t have the money to pay our bills. Since then, the Fed has been doing various accounting tricks to come up with extra money, but they can’t do this forever. Within the next few months, we will default on our debts unless the debt ceiling is raised. This will be, in short, bad, causing a downgrade of America’s credit rating and probably a worldwide recession. 

Mike McCarthy has vowed that the debt limit will be raised, but only if Biden makes some concessions. What concessions? Nobody knows?! McCarthy is herding rabid cats in the House, so he probably has no idea what his caucus would even vote for. Not that they need to. If a bill to raise the debt limit was brought to the floor, it would easily pass. The Democrats would only need five Republicans to join them for the vote. But the way the House rules work, which is probably the stupidest part of this whole situation, is that the Speaker of the House gets to decide what bills come to the floor and he’s just not going to do it unless the crazies in his party let him (which they won’t).

Meanwhile, Biden is insisting on a “clean” debt limit raise with no extra stuff in there. Well gee, Joe, if that’s what you wanted, you could have gotten it months ago! Here is where I invite you to go listen to Episode 70, where I predicted this exact thing and pleaded with the Democrats to raise the debt limit during the lame duck session where they still controlled Congress but knew the Republicans would be taking over the House soon. They didn’t do it! And now here we are. 

The most likely outcome here is that one or both sides will blink. Either McCarthy gives up a brings a clean bill to the floor or Biden caves and offers some token concessions. But maybe not! During the Obama administration, we got so close to defaulting that America’s credit rating was briefly downgraded, and that could easily happen again. Or it could be even worse and we could actually default. 

I don’t have anything constructive to say here. I’m just so mad that, AS USUAL, I gave great advice and nobody listened to me. Listen next time, dammit!