Treasury Secretary Geithner: Lift Debt Limit to Infinity

[Socio]

http://cnsnews.com/news/article/treasury-secretary-geithner-lift-debt-limit-infinity

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said Friday that Congress should stop placing legal limits on the amount of money the government can borrow and effectively lift the debt limit to infinity.

I think we can extrapolate from this where the next 4 years will take us!

 

[chucky2]

Outstanding.

Now we don't even need to worry about raising taxes or closing loopholes on anyone, and as such, don't have to waste time on having those debates/wars. Time can be spent on something else now...

Chuck

P.S. They can cut Everyones taxes now btw, why not? If debt doesn't matter, why not let Everyone keep more of their money? "Win-Win"

 

[EagleKeeper]

Why even bother with taxes at all?

 

[DaveSimmons]

This is a terrible idea, and will give congress a green light to keep avoiding any hard choices.

In the short term maybe we do need to run deficits, because it's not possible to cut enough fast enough without triggering another recession.

Long term we need to cut spending, increase revenue, and live within our means.

 

[Incorruptible]

What is wrong with this guy? Do not raise the debt limit and start cutting the spending with drastic cuts

 

[Thump553]

It's a wonderful idea. Congress must approve ALL spending decisions, everything that makes us approach the debt ceiling has already been approved by Congress. The emphasis of the taxpayers should be on the bills that create the expense, not some artificial line.

And 18 months ago we all saw what an idiotic show the debt ceiling bill has become. I'd much rather have Congress (and the taxpayers) focus on more productive uses of their time.

 

[Jimzz]

This is a terrible idea, and will give congress a green light to keep avoiding any hard choices.

In the short term maybe we do need to run deficits, because it's not possible to cut enough fast enough without triggering another recession.

Long term we need to cut spending, increase revenue, and live within our means.

HAhahahahahahahahah... yea right; when has congress, either party, had to make "hard choices" due to the debt limit?

The only thing the debt limit has done is give one party a zinger to use in the next election.
If R's are in charge then the D's use it against them. If D's are in charge then the R's use it against them.

The Debt limit is a BS stunt as both parties know they have to raise it and both parties do it every time.

 

[DaveSimmons]

HAhahahahahahahahah... yea right; when has congress, either party, had to make "hard choices" due to the debt limit?

The only thing the debt limit has done is give one party a zinger to use in the next election.
If R's are in charge then the D's use it against them. If D's are in charge then the R's use it against them.

The Debt limit is a BS stunt as both parties know they have to raise it and both parties do it every time.

I wasn't claiming the debt limit got congress to do their job. It hasn't done that since the Clinton years (if then).

What it does do it make it clear over and over again that they are not doing their job. It highlights both parties' shameful lack of fiscal responsibility.

Removing the limit makes it a little easier for them to hide their shame.

 

[Anarchist420]

[...] increase revenue, and live within our means.

spending by the military and the bureaucracy must be slashed, but decreasing govt revenue will allow people to build up their own savings so the people won't have to rely on the govt.

Also, a tax that the govt sets the rate and the value to tax it at, the only tax that can provide the govt with more and more revenue is a property tax... but... it would have to complemented with an income tax or a consumption tax and those will fall on the poor. Please don't complain about the govt not getting enough revenue unless you want a property tax

 

[Ausm]

http://cnsnews.com/news/article/treasury-secretary-geithner-lift-debt-limit-infinity



I think we can extrapolate from this where the next 4 years will take us!

You should love this because Geithner is a Right Winger!

 

[MovingTarget]

Normally, I would be railing against this as a bad idea. However, with the GOP's recent stunt involving the debt limit, it may be prudent. Removing it entirely is better than the alternative they nearly forced upon our nation's finance. Fiscal conservatism my arse...

 

[Socio]

spending by the military and the bureaucracy must be slashed, but decreasing govt revenue will allow people to build up their own savings so the people won't have to rely on the govt.

Also, a tax that the govt sets the rate and the value to tax it at, the only tax that can provide the govt with more and more revenue is a property tax... but... it would have to complemented with an income tax or a consumption tax and those will fall on the poor. Please don't complain about the govt not getting enough revenue unless you want a property tax

Cutting Military spending will barely make a dent, it is entitlement cuts that are the big cuts that need to happen and guess what will give the most deficit cuts?

CBO: ObamaCare Offers Biggest Pot Of Deficit Cuts

http://news.investors.com/ibd-edito...618-obamacare-offers-biggest-deficit-cuts.htm

A Congressional Budget Office report on ways to reduce the deficit, released last week to help guide budget negotiators in the upcoming "grand bargain" talks, contains one eye-opening item.

It turns out that the single biggest pot of potential deficit savings available to lawmakers is ... ObamaCare.

Unfortunately the Democrats will not concede entitlement cuts, at least not to the level needed as that is biting the hand that feeds them or should I say votes for them.

 

[sandorski]

He is correct. The Debt Limit is a complete waste of time and nothing more than a Political Construct used for various nefarious purposes.

That does not mean that the Deficit/Debt does not need to be addressed, just that the Debt Limit is completely nonsensical.

 

[nageov3t]

we need to either:

a) raise the debt limit to infinity
b) have serious discussions about taxation/spending priorities when voting on any limit raisings in the future

B obviously will never happen.

 

[SP33Demon]

The debt limit is a farce. I agree, the limit should be lifted. The dollar isn't going to crash due to our military might alone.

 

[Socio]

The debt limit is a farce. I agree, the limit should be lifted. The dollar isn't going to crash due to our military might alone.

Sequestration of our military will shrink it down so much we could very well be butts waiting to be kicked.

 

[werepossum]

Normally, I would be railing against this as a bad idea. However, with the GOP's recent stunt involving the debt limit, it may be prudent. Removing it entirely is better than the alternative they nearly forced upon our nation's finance. Fiscal conservatism my arse...

Just out of morbid curiosity, what level of debt (if any) would you consider to be too much? Feel free to phrase your answer in multiples of the GDP or in multiples of our budget. For instance, currently our budget is about 5% debt service due to insanely low interest rates. Is 10% okay? 25%? Should we set a maximum percentage and just automatically increase the budget, borrowing new money to pay the interest of the old borrowing?

This is important because our insanely low interest rates are due to two things, the Fed making up money to invest and the rest of the world being judged even more unstable. Should the EU get its economic house in order first, we're left with only the Fed to create money with which it buys bonds. At that point, why indeed bother with taxes at all?

 

[fskimospy]

The debt ceiling is one of the dumber ideas we've ever had. All spending is already authorized by Congress. All that having a debt ceiling does is ask Congress to re-authorize all the same spending that they already authorized once. The second time around however they get to vote on it while threatening the creditworthiness of the world's largest economy and reserve currency. What a wonderful idea!

There's a reason why no other major industrialized country on earth has a debt ceiling.

 

[Generator]

The debt ceiling is one of the dumber ideas we've ever had. All spending is already authorized by Congress. All that having a debt ceiling does is ask Congress to re-authorize all the same spending that they already authorized once. The second time around however they get to vote on it while threatening the creditworthiness of the world's largest economy and reserve currency. What a wonderful idea!

There's a reason why no other major industrialized country on earth has a debt ceiling.

So is it a double authorization or second authorization of money already spent?

 

[IGBT]

it's the obama smoke and mirrors economy. his finger prints are all over it.

 

[gevorg]

sorry China

 

[nextJin]

Sequestration of our military will shrink it down so much we could very well be butts waiting to be kicked.

Lol it would take china half a century to catch up with us even if we cut spending by half. All we need to do is stop the bullshit and just focus on actual defense spending. Doing that alone would allow us to continue R&D spending, sustain a sizable military with quality service members, and STILL provide humanitarian assistance across the globe (Navy).

Even though our problems are not totally on military spending it still needs to be cut along with future entitlement spending.

Obviously something has to be done, and something is going to eventually force our hand.

 

[bononos]

sorry China

Is it time to unilaterally default on China's t-bills? I think so. *cringe*

 

[Jhhnn]

The debt ceiling is one of the dumber ideas we've ever had. All spending is already authorized by Congress. All that having a debt ceiling does is ask Congress to re-authorize all the same spending that they already authorized once. The second time around however they get to vote on it while threatening the creditworthiness of the world's largest economy and reserve currency. What a wonderful idea!

There's a reason why no other major industrialized country on earth has a debt ceiling.

So is it a double authorization or second authorization of money already spent?

Not necessarily spent, but rather authorized by Congress to be spent.

It's an opportunity for posturing, pandering & faux "concern" over commitments already made by Congress.

In what has become SOP, Repubs used the full faith & credit of the Govt as a hostage in a situation they helped to create when they passed the budget in the first place. The whole debt ceiling crisis was a contrivance, a trap, leading into the "fiscal cliff", more accurately called the austerity bomb... you know, what they're posturing about today.

 

[bignateyk]

Sequestration of our military will shrink it down so much we could very well be butts waiting to be kicked.

Patently false. The military and all government agencies who doll out money to contractors are currently operating as though they have been sequestered.