Overview for debt-ceiling

Ratings Agencies Want to See Bush Tax Cuts Lapse

The suggestion that the US needs to cut $4 trillion in projected debt over the next ten years in order to avoid a downgrade in its debt rating, posed here in an S&P report , has gained significant traction among many on the right. Erick Erickson, when he's not denying "absolution" to the …

Written by Fred Bauer on Tuesday July 26, 2011

Reid's $40 Billion: Yeah, Right

On balance, Harry Reid's plan for raising the debt ceiling and cutting spending looks pretty good to me. Congress will eventually need to do more but the plan he's devised is a fair enough middle ground: real spending cuts with no broad-based tax increases. One feature of the plan, an effort to, as …

Written by Eli Lehrer on Tuesday July 26, 2011

Obama: "Make Your Voices Heard"

President Obama last night appealed to supporters to make their voices heard, to pressure Congress to raise the debt ceiling. The demand he emphasized most: that any deal extend the administration enough credit to get past the next election. Odd priority, no? You might have expected that this …

Written by David Frum on Tuesday July 26, 2011

Watch: David Frum Talks Debt Ceiling and Obama

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Written by FrumForum News on Tuesday July 26, 2011

Bloggers React to Boehner's Debt Ceiling Plan

As more details began emerging today about House Speaker John Boehner’s new debt-ceiling proposal, FrumForum decided to compile some initial reactions to the plan from around the Web. The Washington Examiner ’s Philip Klein is skeptical that Boehner can deliver on his promised spending cuts: …

Written by Ajay Ravichandran on Monday July 25, 2011

Resume the Debt Debate in 2012?

So here's the new Republican debt-ceiling idea: Pass a $1 trillion increase in the debt ceiling joined to $1 trillion in spending cuts over the next 10 years, no revenues. That sounds dramatic. But $1 trillion in spending cuts over a decade is not as big a deal as it sounds, especially if you …

Written by David Frum on Monday July 25, 2011

Stumbling Toward Disaster

There's blame for all in the debt talk breakdown. The president walked away from Simpson-Bowles, declined to present plans to reach long-term budget balance, etc. etc. etc. But in the argy-bargy, keep this in mind: the debt problem has become a debt crisis for one reason only: because …

Written by David Frum on Friday July 22, 2011

Towards a Deal?

Reading the New York Times column by David Brooks on why Republicans should vote for the “plan” that House Speaker John Boehner and President Obama reportedly have developed casts a pall of depression over any thinking person. Reading the New York Times column by Paul Krugman on the …

Written by Steve Bell on Friday July 22, 2011

Looking for the Exits

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Written by David Frum on Friday July 22, 2011

Heritage: Default is Better then Compromise

Ed Feulner in an unusual signed personal statement today urges Republicans to force the country into default unless President Obama yields on the outermost conservative demands. In the process, he equates President Obama and the Democrats to the Japanese militarists who bombed Pearl Harbor. I …

Written by David Frum on Thursday July 21, 2011

Just Lift the Debt Ceiling!

Larry Kudlow and The New Republic like the Gang of Six plan. Keith Hennessey does not . Obviously some people here are kidding themselves. And isn't that just inevitable when plans are being cobbled together by weary legislators working long hours in a summer heatwave? It's only asking …

Written by David Frum on Thursday July 21, 2011

Time is Running Out

Yesterday evening and last night something important in the debt ceiling discussion happened: many members of both the House and Senate moved from “worried” to “scared.” This is good news, of a sort. It further confirms our judgment that the United States will not default on its sovereign …

Written by Steve Bell on Thursday July 21, 2011

Will the "No New Taxes" Pledge Cause Financial Disaster?

The Cato Institute held a debate at the Rayburn House Office Building to discuss whether the Republican Party’s “No New Taxes” pledge is an effective tool for Conservatives’ ultimate goals of shrinking the federal government and restoring fiscal responsibility to Washington. Arguing that …

Written by Fred Messner on Tuesday July 19, 2011

Raising the Debt Ceiling is Inevitable

The debt ceiling will be raised, but will get higher by a horrendous amount. It fair to say that most people do not understand the intricacies and machinations of the “debt ceiling” debate underway in the U.S., involving the President, Congress, Republicans Democrats, with the rest of the …

Written by Peter Worthington on Monday July 18, 2011

GOP Demands Unconditional Surrender

The GOP is demanding unconditional surrender on the debt ceiling, just like it did on healthcare In my CNN column , I write about how the GOP is seeking unconditional surrender on the debt ceiling, and that this can lead to the same disaster that happened to the healthcare bill: In this …

Written by David Frum on Monday July 18, 2011

Newt Stays Sane on the Balanced Budget Amendment

Newt Gingrich's campaign may be struggling, but he is staking a surprisingly smart position on the Balanced Budget Amendment. As the debt ceiling talks drag on, many Republicans are suggesting a new condition for raising the amount that the federal government can borrow: the passage of a …

Written by Ajay Ravichandran on Friday July 15, 2011

Mitt Romney Dodges on the Debt Ceiling

Romney doesn't want to oppose the House Republicans, but he sure is not endorsing them. Mitt Romney gave an artful answer today to the debt-ceiling question “The answer for the country is for the president to agree to cut federal spending and cap federal spending and put into place a …

Written by David Frum on Thursday July 14, 2011

Will Contractors Sue After Default Day?

If contractors don't get paid after the debt ceiling is not raised, will they sue the federal government? What happens on the day after Aug 2 if the debt ceiling is not raised? Frum Forum this week contacted a number of government vendors and contractors who unanimously stated: they had no …

Written by Fred Messner on Thursday July 14, 2011

Downgrade of U.S. Debt Looms on the Horizon

Moody's may give U.S. debt a full-fledged downgrade as soon as next week. A well-placed source tells me that Moody's, the bond rating giant that just announced a "review" of the U.S. debt , may turn it into a full-fledged downgrade as soon as next week. True or not, the real risk of a downgrade …

Written by Eli Lehrer on Wednesday July 13, 2011

Deal Will Come, but May Disappoint

Confusion usually reigns in Washington, D.C., negotiations just before a solution emerges. Small signs can signal big things to come. Confusion usually reigns in Washington, D.C., negotiations just before a solution emerges. Thus, small signs can signal big things to come. As Federal Reserve …

Written by Steve Bell on Wednesday July 13, 2011