Debt Polling Roundup: What Does the Country Want?

[xchrom]

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2011/07/debt-polling-roundup-what-does-the-country-want/242318/

America is slated to default on its debt on Aug. 2 unless Congress agrees to raise the debt ceiling, and Republicans and Democrats are having trouble agreeing on a deal to forestall that outcome. Everyone seems to agree that, in a perfect world, we'd cut some spending. Nobody likes the trillion-dollar deficits incurred in each of the last two years. Beyond that, there seems to be little agreement. President Obama and Congress could decide to:

* raise the debt limit, no strings attached, as the White House called for in April

* lower the deficit by $4 trillion over 10 years, including about $1 trillion in revenue raised by tightening the corporate tax code and raising taxes on higher incomes, as Obama called for recently

* cut about $2 trillion, without raising taxes on anyone, as House Speaker John Boehner proposed two weeks ago

* let Obama raise the debt ceiling without Congress's approval, but create a deficit-reduction commission tp propose a package of cuts. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell favor this plan.

* lower the deficit by $3.7 trillion, including $1 trillion in added tax revenue from corporations. This is the "Gang of Six" plan unveiled this week by a bipartisan group of senators

* punt, raising the debt limit temporarily and ensuring that the debate continues

Different sides have very different opinions. House Democrats insist Social Security and Medicare benefits are untouchable, but Obama is open to cuts. House Republicans insist there be no raising taxes of any sort.

So, what does the public think about all this? Below, a look at the last four major polls on the matter, all released in the last week, from CBS, ABC/Washington Post, USA Today/Gallup, and the Pew Research Center:





***the muddled masses.

[ThomThom]

1. not raising the debt ceiling does not have to mean we default

not raising the debt ceiling means we can not borrow money to finance wars and other spending. We have enough money coming in from withholding and other taxes to pay the interest on the debt. Social Security has money to pay it's required pay outs. The President will decide what gets money and what doesn't. He can meet our debt obligations. The way this is being framed is completely ridiculous. I say call the republicans bluff.