US Treasury: Debt limit must be raised this week

[UpInArms]

http://www.reuters.com/financeNewsArticle.jhtml?type=bondsNews&storyID=6819572

WASHINGTON, Nov 15 (Reuters) - The U.S. Treasury Department on Monday postponed announcing a four-week bill auction to avoid piercing the limit on federal borrowing, and said Congress needed to raise the statutory debt ceiling this week.

The offering delay had been expected after Treasury last week said it had no authority to issue the bills that would have settled on Thursday, the day extraordinary measures used to skirt the debt limit are set to run out.

The Treasury Department said it was in talks with the House of Representatives and the Senate on the issue, and said it was essential lawmakers act as soon as possible to lift the limit.

<snip>

Lawmakers are expected to vote before Thursday to increase the debt ceiling, possibly by as much as $800 billion, a Senate aide said. The aide, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a Senate vote on increasing the limit could come before noon on Wednesday.

...more...

That $800 Billion will take the debt over $8 TRILLION



The estimated population of the United States is 294,807,903
so each citizen's share of this debt is $25,265.18.

The National Debt has continued to increase an average of
$1.61 billion per day since September 30, 2003

[htuttle]

1. How can we be out of money?

We still have checks left in our checkbook.

Warm up those printing presses!

[LifeDuringWartime]

2. rats jumping ship

could this be part of the reason?

[kcwayne]

3. You cannot trust Republicans with money

They have no ceiling on spending, especially when it has no benefit for the people being taxed.

[cliss]

4. The Grand Old Republicans:

Party of the Fiscal Conservatives.

Conservatives, my ass.

[ilovenicepeople]

25. Everything is hypocracy with these folks

they ALWAYS do the exact opposite as they say they will.Welcome to Extreme Bankruptcy.

[sonicx]

5. Democrats should filibuster...

well, no....but it would be funny.

"it's time to restore fiscal responsibility." ;)

[Old and In the Way]

9. I want them to starting wearing "T" shirts with a big yellow banana

on it.

And maybe they could entertain us juggling banana's while the Republicans keep dismantling the country.

[lapfog_1]

15. On Lou Dobbs

It was mentioned that the Dems want a simple voice but the rethugs
want a role call vote on extending the debt ceiling.

I'm still trying to figure out this little skirmish.

Could it be that the rethugs want to run ads in 2006 BLAMING the
dems for the huge deficits?

[Sparky McGruff]

24. The Dems should call their bluff.

Every single one should vote against the measure, and then walk out and hold a press conference on the capitol steps, saying that they won't vote for any measure to increase the debt without a plan to address the fiscal health of the country.

It would force the repubs to vote for it (as the party in charge) or risk bringing the government to a halt. It would also be a great PR move for the Dems as they take on the crown of "fiscal responsibility".

The repubs have played these stupid PR games to the detriment of the country for years. At least this game would be in the interests of long-term fiscal sanity.

[Robbien]

6. Since Social Security is out of cash, the Feds are robbing

Government pensions.

In order to finance its normal operations without breaching thedebt limit, the US government has been employing various accounting maneuvers, which include stopping temporarily putting new investment into federal workers' retirement fund.

[MichiganVote]

7. Theft, theft and more theft

Where is our frickin' money?

[snippy]

8. Republican presidents always have to raise the debt limit frequently.

This is Bush's third or fourth time. And assuming that government spending does not exceed Bush's budget projections for the next four years, it will have to be raised by at least another two trillion dollars according to the White House.

[whistle]

10. Fu*k'em! Let Bush and the republicans in congress dangle....

...if Bush wants more funds he can just raise taxes on the wealthy.

[gerrilea]

11. Yep...I have a family member whose pension doesn't exist right now....

I was told the same thing about robbing the pensions...too bad for all of us...we will never get out of debt now...

Everyone is jumping ship because as some else here today said...maybe they know something we don't...like nuclear war or some such crazy thing...coming...

[Bluebear]

12. It's like people diagnosed with a disease buying big Lexus cars...

and driving up their charge cards to the max because they think what the hell. Of course, if a cure comes they're screwed.

[Mist]

30. I think they know perfectly well

they've screwed the economy. They know our currency will soon be good for little more than collage projects. Maybe we should have a Barter Board along with the sale board?

[DRoseDARs]

13. Tax-and-Spend Democrats? How about I.O.U. Republicans!

Run with it, folks! ;) :thumbsup:

[earthside]

20. How will Democrats vote?

Will the Democrats in Congress vote YES to raise the debt ceiling?

If they had one ounce of guts, every single one of them would vote NO!

Let Bush and the radical Republicans have to accept ALL the responsibility for their tax cut, borrow, and spend policies!

[struggle4progress]

22. Borrow and Spend! Borrow and Spend! Red Ink! Red Ink!

[EmperorHasNoClothes]

14. Really, what is the point of a "debt ceiling"

if you can just raise it whenever you need more money?

If I managed money like this government does, I would have declared bankruptcy a few hundred times by now. :eyes:

[htuttle]

16. But you, sir, do not own a printing press

It makes all the difference.

[UpInArms]

18. was that a prod for me to post the following?

http://www.federalreserve.gov/boarddocs/speeches/2002/20021121/default.htm

(Ben Bernanke speech November 21, 2002)

excerpt:

What has this got to do with monetary policy? Like gold, U.S. dollars have value only to the extent that they are strictly limited in supply. But the U.S. government has a technology, called a printing press (or, today, its electronic equivalent), that allows it to produce as many U.S. dollars as it wishes at essentially no cost. By increasing the number of U.S. dollars in circulation, or even by credibly threatening to do so, the U.S. government can also reduce the value of a dollar in terms of goods and services, which is equivalent to raising the prices in dollars of those goods and services. We conclude that, under a paper-money system, a determined government can always generate higher spending and hence positive inflation.

...more...

[ClintonTyree]

17. Filibuster..................

I'm serious. See how Georgie handles it.

[TahitiNut]

19. A debt of $56,359.32 per employed American and going up.

While it's common to show the Federal Debt as a percentage of the GDP, it's not so common to show it in terms of the number of employed persons.

[struggle4progress]

21. Democrats simply must stand up for fiscal responsibility. eom

[daleo]

23. They will be saved by the Rapture

What's a trillion, when God is your banker.

[Pachamama]

26. NO MORE BLANK CHECKS! I'm tired of our children's future being pissed

away for these people while they rape and pillage ours and the worlds resources while killing so many people.

Folks, we have an economic melt-down brewing in the works....if it doesn't come in the next several months, it will certainly be in the next year....

I want the Dems to not budge...someone has to be fiscally responsible.... :grr:

[Baja Margie]

27. We are going down the tubes, rapidly.

[Brundle_Fly]

28. there is only one tube....

and it is a giant suckhole.

[ausiedownunderground]

29. Hey, The rest of the world wants to know when we can get our money back!!!

O.K. Democrats when are you going to start paying us our money back? We've supported your 8 Trillion US dollar debt and all we've got back so far is War - Kill everybody but us Americans, The X-box, Fast food franchises, more and more complicated financial investment arrangements from your leading investment brains, mostly really crappy films, some half-decent music - but only half! some Boeing airplanes, plenty of really nifty weapon systems, more weapons, guns,helicopter gunships, tanks,drugs,how to run an election really fairley using the X-box and for some strange reason nearly all our petrol stations?
In Oz thats all you've got!
We, with our rest of the world buddies! have got 8 Trillion $US dollars owed to us! and for the majority of what we have had to put up with - in exchange for the 8 Trillion lend we didn't exactly get the best deal!
So, Democrats, when are you going to start paying it back because we could probably use it ourselves. Your not the only country with problems! God if you payed it back we could all be rich and famous and invade whoever we liked?
Have you checked the value of the $US lately?