The Great Myth About The Debt Ceiling

Pat Cunningham explains:

…lots of people seem to think that raising the debt ceiling would allow the Obama administration to spend more freely, to come up with more programs that will cost taxpayers ever more money.

This myth is fostered by irresponsible rhetoric from Republican politicians who warn against giving the president “a blank check.” That’s a bogus term, but it plays well among the dimwits who don’t understand the first thing about what the debt ceiling is and how it works.

Here’s the real deal:

Raising the debt ceiling only allows the government to pay the bills it already has incurred. It does not allow Obama or anyone else to spend even one penny that Congress has not already appropriated.

Spending bills emanate from the House of Representatives, which currently is controlled by a Republican majority. Obama simply is not free to conjure new spending programs without specific consent of the House (and concurrence by the Senate). To suggest otherwise is to lie to the American people…

The danger in not raising the debt ceiling when the need arises is that it would result in America defaulting on its financial obligations. The consequences of that would include a lowering of the government’s credit rating and an increase in interest rates, which would make it more difficult for ordinary Americans to buy homes or cars and more difficult for businesses to expand or retool or otherwise take steps to create more jobs.

By: Alan

Alan Colmes is the publisher of Liberaland.