Why the US is always hitting a "debt ceiling"

[NurseJackie]

Is the huge US national debt a problem?

Nearly every year, America seems to teeter on the edge of a crisis as the national debt comes dangerously close to hitting the “debt ceiling” and the President and Congress fight over raising it. The “debt ceiling” is really just a limit on how much debt the country can take on. While the US isn’t the only country to have one, it is the only country to have legislation that regularly puts it on the brink of economic disaster.

The current US debt is nearing $29 trillion. That's a trillion with a T. Is that… too much? And who does it affect?

[Jim__]

1. Good information. It really points out how expensive the republican political games are.

[peppertree]

2. It should be ok as long as a) interest rates remain under control

and b) the rest of the world continues to accept U.S. dollars on sight.

Should the first go, it first would create a new budgetary strain (as if we didn't have enough) in the form of trillion-dollar annual interest charges;

should the second go, we'd be looking at an Argentina situation.