tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973827.post2722170790256768256..comments2024-01-11T07:40:01.736-05:00Comments on The Stopped Clock: Ignoring the Debt CeilingAaronhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16523334580402022332noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973827.post-74986855933756852102011-06-29T10:30:27.901-04:002011-06-29T10:30:27.901-04:00I think it's only a matter of time before, if ...I think it's only a matter of time before, if no deal is reached, the Dems release some media talking points that will put a lot of heat on the Republicans. I know that there are people who say that the Dems are consistently late to the media war, but I think Obama has been pretty savvy about when he goes to the media, for example in the manner in which he released his birth certificate. If you act too soon, it's "old news".<br /><br />To put it in simple terms, if the government cannot service its debt and thus cannot borrow money to pay its bills, damage to the future economy aside, there are a great many federal employees who will likely go unpaid. You respond that the Republicans don't care? Fair enough. But a good many of those federal employees are in the military. Also, if the government cannot pay its contractors in the various war zones, even assuming those contractors don't stop working they may not be able to pay their subcontractors. Then our war effort starts to look like Gadaffi's, with his soldiers reportedly laying down their arms whenever he runs short of cash to pay them. If we can't pay for fuel and fuel trucks, we run out of fuel.<br /><br />A grand bargain, a fake one as you suggest, may be struck. But it may benefit the President to push negotiations toward the deadline, publicly call the Republicans on their antics and their consequences, and make it much more difficult for the Republicans to repeat this game every time there's a vote on the debt ceiling. If that doesn't work, perhaps a minor constitutional crisis of the sort you suggest will be required. I don't think either side wants that, but it beats going through this every freaking time the Republicans pass a budget that they later say involves too much spending.Atticusnoreply@blogger.com