The House Republican plan to extend the debt ceiling for six weeks would permanently ban the Treasury Department from using extraordinary measures to avoid default, congressional aides said.
The provision would ban practices, used by Democratic and Republican administrations for decades, which have effectively allowed the Treasury to limit investments in pensions and other funds when the government bumps up against its borrowing limit. These steps have extended the time that Treasury can continue borrowing and paying the nation’s bills while Congress debates terms for raising the debt ceiling.The White House hasn’t said it whether it would accept the condition as part of any deal, though it effectively would be surrendering tools it uses to avoid falling behind on federal payments. The Democratic-led Senate could reject the provision.
Even though the steps are called “emergency” measures, they have become employed so routinely during recent fiscal standoffs that Congress often waits for the emergency steps to be exhausted before beginning negotiations on raising the borrowing limit.
Congress earlier this year suspended the debt ceiling until mid-May, but the Treasury Department has used emergency measures for five months to allow the government to continue borrowing money and paying bills. These emergency measures will be exhausted by Oct. 17, the department has said.
In 2011, the government hit the debt ceiling in mid-May but used extraordinary measures to continue borrowing money and paying bills until early August. The emergency measures have lasted longer in 2013 in part because the deficit is smaller and there is more tax revenue than two years ago.
House Republican leaders are in talks to extend the current debt limit until Nov. 22. One concern among Republican aides had been that Treasury could use the GOP’s proposed six-week extension and then use emergency measures to continue borrowing money and paying bills for six additional months. But in trying to remove this flexibility, Republican leaders moved to permanently take such powers off of the table.
To remove the White House's ability to navigate a debt ceiling standoff without immediately capitulating -- or to remove any wiggle room that Congress has to stall in the future, take your pick.
either way it would increase the chances of us defaulting.
House Debt-Ceiling Plan Would Ban ‘Emergency’ Measures - Washington Wire - WSJ
can anyone understand why the house republicans are planning on doing this?
Um, because they want a hard deadline, not a soft one, to get negotiations completed? Just a thought... :doh
They get that by running out the clock. They don't need to tie the Presidency's hands any further.
No, if the government is allowed to completely reload, it could begin using the "extraordinary measures" all over again to push out any debt ceiling negotiations...
Um. Reload?
Yes, you know, fully repay the programs that it hasn't been which allowed this issue to move from mid May until now...
Okay. What would be wrong with that?
It sort of takes the urgency to reach a solution out of the equation...
Okay, so instead of tying the President's hands, maybe they force the issue on themselves -- require that the matter be settled within X days of the debt ceiling being reached, or they stay in continuous session without pay until they get'er done. If they want a hard deadline so badly, all they have to do is impose it on themselves.
You seem to forget that all parties must agree to any deal...
I understand that. I'm just saying that if the Republicans really want a hard deadline, they impose it on themselves for the future in this debt ceiling bill. The Senate will most definitely sign off on it with a chuckle, and the President too. They will then have proven that they're serious about wanting a hard deadline, and they will have done it without crapping in someone else's corn flakes.
It's not a party issue; it's a policy issue...
If they weren't bringing it up at the 11th hour, I'd agree with you.
Well, the other party wasn't too interested in any negotiation until now. Was it?
They get that by running out the clock. They don't need to tie the Presidency's hands any further.
If they weren't bringing it up at the 11th hour, I'd agree with you.
We have a president who can't be trusted to manage our money wisely. His hands need to be tied.
I guess Obamacare is THAT important to the Democrats.
It is obviously important enough to Democrats that they're not going to let the Republicans get away with waiting until the last minute and then trying to force the issue under threat of dire consequences.
Obamacare is so important that the Dems will let the country sink, right along with it.
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