Geithner Says GOP Prepared to Lift Debt Limit - WSJ.com
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704204604576268881682315782.html
...."In interviews aired on the Sunday talk shows, Mr. Geithner said House Speaker John Boehner and other senior Republicans told President Barack Obama in discussions last week that they were aware of the risk of a credit default and were open to lifting the limit even in the absence of a comprehensive deal to slash the country's debt load. The White House has promised to push ahead on a sweeping long-term deal to pare government spending, but officials say that might not come together until late June at the earliest. The Treasury Department says the U.S. will exceed the current limit, now set at $14.3 trillion, by mid-May and could default on its debt in early July if no action is taken to raise the ceiling. Mr. Geithner said the two pursuits—sealing a long-range deal and lifting the ceiling—may have to run on parallel tracks. "But if by the time we need to raise the debt limit, we haven't worked all that out, Congress still has to raise the debt limit," Mr. Geithner sa
id on
NBC's "Meet the Press." Republican leadership, he said, "recognizes that." But differences remain between the two sides on what steps will be needed to reach agreement on lifting the debt limit. ......"
RRD:Ryan denies this.
Ryan: GOP has told White House it wants cuts for debt ceiling vote - The Hill's On The Money
http://thehill.com/blogs/on-the-money/budget/156511-ryan-gop-has-told-white-h...
...." House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R -Wis.) said Sunday that he has not been informed of any communication from House GOP leaders to the White House that they will back a raising of the debt ceiling no matter what. Ryan articulated a nuanced position on “Face the Nation,” saying the GOP is calling for a spending cuts deal “in conjunction” with the raising of the nation's $14.3 trillion debt ceiling but refusing to say he would vote against a clean debt ceiling bill. ....." ....." Ryan said that, as he understands it, GOP leaders have told the White House: “In addition to raising the debt limit, we want financial controls, we want cuts in spending accompanying the raising of the debt ceiling.” “Nobody wants to play around with the country's credit rating, nobody wants to see default happening, but we also think it is important to get a handle on future borrowing as we deal with raising the debt ceiling,” Ryan said. "..... Coburn has vowed to vote against the debt ceiling increase unless his demands are met.He continues to push ahead with the "gang of six" deficit negotiations.
Said six being:Sens. Saxby Chambliss (Ga.), Tom Coburn (Okla.) Mike Crapo (Idaho); Sens. Dick Durbin (Ill.), Kent Conrad (N.D.), and Mark Warner (Va.). Coburn, Van Hollen draw battle lines on debt ceiling - The Hill's Blog Briefing Room
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/156501-coburn-van-hollen-dra...
RRD:Further links.Pressure is being applied to "educate" i.e.:harass,bribe,threaten,pressure,(& possibly seduce & blackmail) Republican freshmen into raising the debt ceiling. As debt ceiling vote nears, the pressure’s on House Republican freshmen - The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/as-debt-ceiling-vote-nears-the-pressur...
RRD:Previously(fn1) I argued that Obama's goal is to reverse the Reagan Revolution by increasing social welfare spending,increasing taxes & slashing defense.It seems that in Rand Paul he has found an enemy on taxes,& an ally on Defense spending.
ANY cuts to the Defense budget should come only after the size of the Government is drastically shrunk.And then only if it does not compromise our security.Neither of these conditions have been met. Rand Paul, Anthony Weiner make their case on the budget and debt ceiling - 44 - The Washington Post http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/44/post/rand-paul-anthony-weiner-make-the... ...."Asked if he could agree to a tax increase to help with the debt, Paul, like most conservative Republicans, said raising taxes was not the answer to the nation’s fiscal problems. “The compromise is not to raise taxes. The compromise for conservatives is to admit the military budget has to be cut,” said Paul, adding that Democrats would have to agree to similar cuts in “welfare” programs."..... RRD:Corker seems to be holding firm. The Daily Times - Corker: No spending change, no debt ceiling hike
http://www.thedailytimes.com/Business_News/story/Corker%3A_No_spending_change...
RRD:As are some Tea Party freshmen(possibly including Renee Ellmers who betrayed us on the budget deal). Tea Party: Cut Spending Before Raising Debt Ceiling - ABC News http://abcnews.go.com/m/story?id=13394544 ..." Representative Joe Walsh, R-Ill., said. "If you're going to ask this Congress to support a raise in the debt ceiling, there's got to be something structural on the spending side." Representative Steve Southerland, R-Fla., agreed that guarantees on spending cuts must be made to secure his vote. "We've got to have some guarantees going forward … that if we raise that debt ceiling, that we get this economy on a trajectory to where we service our debt," Southerland said. "It's going to have to be a lot more than just sweetening it. It's going to have to be concrete."
Representative Allen West,R-Fla.: "I don't believe in leadership by fear and intimidation. I think that leaders have to come up with viable solutions,"
RRD:Though Ellmers was included in the story her quote was on entitlement reform & the Ryan plan,not the debt ceiling.I am unsure of her position.
Forbes columnist Lawrence Hunter (somewhat sneeringly),offers his recommendations on what the Republicans can reasonably expect to get.I am not endorsing it but it interests me.He also denounces the Budget deal arguing: ...."if so-called “emergency spending” is included in the totals, the budget deal actually increases spending by $3.3 billion. "... In Passing The Most Recent Budget, Congress And The President Lied - Lawrence Hunter - Back on the Margin - Forbes http://blogs.forbes.com/lawrencehunter/2011/04/17/in-passing-the-most-recent-... ...."As a condition of raising the debt ceiling sufficiently to accommodate all projected spending growth less a 25-percent reduction in discretionary spending (requiring debt growth of about seven percent compared to anticipated nominal GDP growth of four percent), Republicans should insist that the law also be changed to require a two -thirds majority vote in both Houses of Congress to increase the debt limit in the future by a percentage larger than the GDP increased in the previous year. ".... ....."Second, Republicans should insist that the Toomey/Vitter/DeMint proposal be enacted into law. This provision would prioritize spending on debt service and Social Security to give them both first-call on revenues in the event the debt limit is reached. It would ensure that neither interest on the debt nor Social Security payments would be defaulted on if the federal government were precluded from borrowing more money. Under this hard budget constraint, the rest of the government would have to live on whatever revenues are left over after debt service and Social Security benefits are paid unless Congress is wi
lling
to vote for more new borrowing, by super-majority vote if it wants to increase the debt more than the economy is growing.".... Footnotes:
fn1.
Link to full text of Obama's Budget speech with some very brief comments by me #tcot #tlot #teaparty - fightingstatism http://fightingstatism.posterous.com/link-to-full-text-of-obamas-budget-speec...
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704204604576268881682315782.html
...."In interviews aired on the Sunday talk shows, Mr. Geithner said House Speaker John Boehner and other senior Republicans told President Barack Obama in discussions last week that they were aware of the risk of a credit default and were open to lifting the limit even in the absence of a comprehensive deal to slash the country's debt load. The White House has promised to push ahead on a sweeping long-term deal to pare government spending, but officials say that might not come together until late June at the earliest. The Treasury Department says the U.S. will exceed the current limit, now set at $14.3 trillion, by mid-May and could default on its debt in early July if no action is taken to raise the ceiling. Mr. Geithner said the two pursuits—sealing a long-range deal and lifting the ceiling—may have to run on parallel tracks. "But if by the time we need to raise the debt limit, we haven't worked all that out, Congress still has to raise the debt limit," Mr. Geithner sa
id on
NBC's "Meet the Press." Republican leadership, he said, "recognizes that." But differences remain between the two sides on what steps will be needed to reach agreement on lifting the debt limit. ......"
RRD:Ryan denies this.
Ryan: GOP has told White House it wants cuts for debt ceiling vote - The Hill's On The Money
http://thehill.com/blogs/on-the-money/budget/156511-ryan-gop-has-told-white-h...
...." House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R -Wis.) said Sunday that he has not been informed of any communication from House GOP leaders to the White House that they will back a raising of the debt ceiling no matter what. Ryan articulated a nuanced position on “Face the Nation,” saying the GOP is calling for a spending cuts deal “in conjunction” with the raising of the nation's $14.3 trillion debt ceiling but refusing to say he would vote against a clean debt ceiling bill. ....." ....." Ryan said that, as he understands it, GOP leaders have told the White House: “In addition to raising the debt limit, we want financial controls, we want cuts in spending accompanying the raising of the debt ceiling.” “Nobody wants to play around with the country's credit rating, nobody wants to see default happening, but we also think it is important to get a handle on future borrowing as we deal with raising the debt ceiling,” Ryan said. "..... Coburn has vowed to vote against the debt ceiling increase unless his demands are met.He continues to push ahead with the "gang of six" deficit negotiations.
Said six being:Sens. Saxby Chambliss (Ga.), Tom Coburn (Okla.) Mike Crapo (Idaho); Sens. Dick Durbin (Ill.), Kent Conrad (N.D.), and Mark Warner (Va.). Coburn, Van Hollen draw battle lines on debt ceiling - The Hill's Blog Briefing Room
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/156501-coburn-van-hollen-dra...
RRD:Further links.Pressure is being applied to "educate" i.e.:harass,bribe,threaten,pressure,(& possibly seduce & blackmail) Republican freshmen into raising the debt ceiling. As debt ceiling vote nears, the pressure’s on House Republican freshmen - The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/as-debt-ceiling-vote-nears-the-pressur...
RRD:Previously(fn1) I argued that Obama's goal is to reverse the Reagan Revolution by increasing social welfare spending,increasing taxes & slashing defense.It seems that in Rand Paul he has found an enemy on taxes,& an ally on Defense spending.
ANY cuts to the Defense budget should come only after the size of the Government is drastically shrunk.And then only if it does not compromise our security.Neither of these conditions have been met. Rand Paul, Anthony Weiner make their case on the budget and debt ceiling - 44 - The Washington Post http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/44/post/rand-paul-anthony-weiner-make-the... ...."Asked if he could agree to a tax increase to help with the debt, Paul, like most conservative Republicans, said raising taxes was not the answer to the nation’s fiscal problems. “The compromise is not to raise taxes. The compromise for conservatives is to admit the military budget has to be cut,” said Paul, adding that Democrats would have to agree to similar cuts in “welfare” programs."..... RRD:Corker seems to be holding firm. The Daily Times - Corker: No spending change, no debt ceiling hike
http://www.thedailytimes.com/Business_News/story/Corker%3A_No_spending_change...
RRD:As are some Tea Party freshmen(possibly including Renee Ellmers who betrayed us on the budget deal). Tea Party: Cut Spending Before Raising Debt Ceiling - ABC News http://abcnews.go.com/m/story?id=13394544 ..." Representative Joe Walsh, R-Ill., said. "If you're going to ask this Congress to support a raise in the debt ceiling, there's got to be something structural on the spending side." Representative Steve Southerland, R-Fla., agreed that guarantees on spending cuts must be made to secure his vote. "We've got to have some guarantees going forward … that if we raise that debt ceiling, that we get this economy on a trajectory to where we service our debt," Southerland said. "It's going to have to be a lot more than just sweetening it. It's going to have to be concrete."
Representative Allen West,R-Fla.: "I don't believe in leadership by fear and intimidation. I think that leaders have to come up with viable solutions,"
RRD:Though Ellmers was included in the story her quote was on entitlement reform & the Ryan plan,not the debt ceiling.I am unsure of her position.
Forbes columnist Lawrence Hunter (somewhat sneeringly),offers his recommendations on what the Republicans can reasonably expect to get.I am not endorsing it but it interests me.He also denounces the Budget deal arguing: ...."if so-called “emergency spending” is included in the totals, the budget deal actually increases spending by $3.3 billion. "... In Passing The Most Recent Budget, Congress And The President Lied - Lawrence Hunter - Back on the Margin - Forbes http://blogs.forbes.com/lawrencehunter/2011/04/17/in-passing-the-most-recent-... ...."As a condition of raising the debt ceiling sufficiently to accommodate all projected spending growth less a 25-percent reduction in discretionary spending (requiring debt growth of about seven percent compared to anticipated nominal GDP growth of four percent), Republicans should insist that the law also be changed to require a two -thirds majority vote in both Houses of Congress to increase the debt limit in the future by a percentage larger than the GDP increased in the previous year. ".... ....."Second, Republicans should insist that the Toomey/Vitter/DeMint proposal be enacted into law. This provision would prioritize spending on debt service and Social Security to give them both first-call on revenues in the event the debt limit is reached. It would ensure that neither interest on the debt nor Social Security payments would be defaulted on if the federal government were precluded from borrowing more money. Under this hard budget constraint, the rest of the government would have to live on whatever revenues are left over after debt service and Social Security benefits are paid unless Congress is wi
lling
to vote for more new borrowing, by super-majority vote if it wants to increase the debt more than the economy is growing.".... Footnotes:
fn1.
Link to full text of Obama's Budget speech with some very brief comments by me #tcot #tlot #teaparty - fightingstatism http://fightingstatism.posterous.com/link-to-full-text-of-obamas-budget-speec...
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