Is Debating Debt Policy Actually Terrorism?

Reason ^ | FROM THE AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2023 ISSUE | KATHERINE MANGU-WARD

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Debt doesn't care about elections. The U.S. government must continue to pay its bills, and as long as current spending trends continue, it must keep borrowing money to do so.

But politicians care very much about elections. When it recently became apparent that the government was about to smash its head on the $31.4 trillion debt ceiling established by Congress, thus potentially triggering a catastrophic cash crunch and default on American debt obligations, the political leadership of both parties got right to work figuring out the best way to avoid losing their next election.

In the end, the bipartisan deal to suspend the debt limit—on which the ink was still drying as this issue went to press—just so happens to have an expiration date of January 2025, right after the next election cycle is complete.

Unlike the previous deal, the new agreement contains no dollar figure at which Congress must once again authorize more debt. Technically, the bill's 99 pages include $1.5 trillion in cuts from projected future federal spending over the next 10 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office. But those cuts might as well have been written in disappearing ink, in part because of a series of backroom deals to undermine them. The actual cuts most likely to stick are small and mostly symbolic rather than substantive, such as trims to planned increases in IRS funding.

The deal does nothing to reckon with the twin time bombs of Social Security and Medicare. An exciting new feature of this election cycle is that all of the leading candidates are now just saying out loud that they will not be doing anything to reduce spending on entitlements.

[ClearCase_guy]

This is terrorism. Notify the FBI if you see something like this.

[entropy12]

The most common reason major powers/kingdoms in history met their demise was excessive spending and debt. Those who ignore history will be doomed to repeat it.

[fella]

Debating debt policy terrorizes those responsible for making that policy. Especially if they have enriched themselves criminally while doing so.