The debt ceiling crisis can be averted by enforcing the Fourteenth Amendment, which mandates the government to pay its debts already incurred, including pensions. That means Social Security, which IS an “entitlement,” in the original sense of the word. We’re entitled to it because we’ve paid for it with taxes.
The game of Russian roulette being played with the U.S. federal debt has been called a “grotesque political carnival” and political blackmail. The uproar stems from a statute that is unique to the United States and never did make much sense. First passed in 1917 and revised multiple times since, it imposes a dollar limit on the federal debt. What doesn’t make sense is that the same Congress that voted on the statute votes on the budget, which periodically exceeds the limit, requiring the statute to be revised. The debt ceiling has been raised 74 times since 1962, 10 of them since 2001. The most recent increase, to $14.294 trillion by H.J.Res. 45, was signed into law on February 12, 2010.
Taxes aren’t collected until after the annual budget is passed, so Congress can’t know in advance whether or how much additional borrowing will be required. Inevitably, there will be some years that the budget pushes the debt over the limit, requiring new legislation. And inevitably, now that this tactic has been discovered, there will be a costly battle over the increase, wasting congressional time, destabilizing markets, and rattling faith in the American financial and political systems. There will be continual blackmail, arm-twisting and concessions. The situation is untenable and cries out for a definitive resolution.
Fortunately, there is one . . .
Read more here.
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Doesn’t the 14th amendment simply say the validity of the debt can not be questioned? that’s different than saying we can exceed a debt limit to pay existing debt. Especially when we hear the fed loaned 16Trillion at “zero” interest to foreign and domestic banks, it seems crazy that we are struggling to make interest payments.
Isn’t another possible solution to the debt-ceiling the use of “trillion dollar” platinum coins and coin seigniorage?
It is an idea that has been promoted by MMTers and others since January.
But, did you originate this idea? Is it in you book?
background:
http://bit.ly/oNycoz
http://bit.ly/nzqJs0
I do not like increasing the debt limit because not doing so will force a confrontation with the Fed and the Banksters sooner. Possibly a confrontation with the Fed will get the country On a path to forming a national bank along the lines of the North Dakota state bank sooner.
As far as the 14th Amendment solution is concerned, the 14th Amendment was passed at a time the United States had a N. Dakota type of central bank and debt was Constitutional and completely different than the unConstitutional debt today created under the Bankster directed Fed. Increasing the Debt Limit is putting off the day we must confront the Neocon NWO Banksters. I want to fight WWIII at my age today and not one day older.
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