United Liberty

Well, this was inevitable:

WASHINGTON — The House on Thursday voted to allow the government to go $1.9 trillion deeper in debt – or about $6,000 more for every U.S. resident.

The measure, approved 217-212, would raise the cap on federal borrowing to $14.3 trillion. That’s enough to keep Congress from having to vote again before the November elections on an issue that is feeding a sense among voters that the government is spending too much and putting future generations under a mountain of debt to do it.

Already, the accumulated debt amounts to roughly $40,000 per person. And the debt is increasingly held by foreign nations such as China.

Passage of the bill would send it to President Barack Obama, who will sign it to avoid a first-ever, market-rattling default on U.S. obligations.

“I can’t think of a more reckless or irresponsible act. Defaulting is not an option,” said Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass. “If the United States defaults, investors will lose confidence that the U.S. will honor its debts in the future.

Do you really think that anyone believes that we’re good for that $ 14 trillion Congressman?

In case you haven’t already heard, the Senate gave Americans a double-dose of bad economic news this afternoon.

The Senate, on a 60 to 39 party line vote, passed a record increase of $1.9 trillion in the debt limit (to $14.3 trillion). The body also shot down a five year freeze on all discretionary spending from fiscal years 2010 to 2014. The amendment needed 3/5 (67 votes) to pass. It failed 56 to 44.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was reconfirmed by the United States Senate for another four year by a vote of 70 to 30, leaving status quo of bailouts and loose monetary policy as the status quo.

Disagree with your Senators’ votes? Let them know.

As expected, Democrats in the Senate are pushing another increase in the ceiling for the national debt:

Senate Democrats on Wednesday proposed allowing the federal government to borrow an additional $1.9 trillion to pay its bills, a record increase that would permit the national debt to reach $14.3 trillion.

The unpopular legislation is needed to allow the federal government to issue bonds to fund programs and prevent a first-time default on obligations. It promises to be a challenging debate for Democrats who, as the party in power, hold the responsibility for passing the legislation.

This would be the second increase in the debt ceiling in a month. You may recall that on Christmas Eve, the Senate approved a $290 billion increase in the nation’s borrowing limit.

By the way, the article notes that just 10 years ago, $1.9 trillion would have been enough to run the government for a year. How’s that for perspective.

Have questions about the national debt ceiling? The Heritage Foundation has put out a video breaking down what exactly it means:

Democrats are planning to raise the debt ceiling by $1.8 trillion at some point this month, which is apparently double what was expected:

“We’ve incurred this debt. We have to pay our bills,” House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told Politico Wednesday. And the Maryland Democrat confirmed that the anticipated increase could be as high as $1.8 trillion — nearly twice what had been assumed in last spring’s budget resolution for the 2010 fiscal year.

The leadership is betting that it’s better for the party to take its lumps now rather than risk further votes over the coming year. But the enormity of the number could create its own dynamic, much as another debt ceiling fight in 1985 gave rise to the Gramm-Rudman deficit reduction act mandating across-the-board spending cuts nearly 25 years ago.

Remember the days when then-candidate Barack Obama promised us a “net spending cut”? While I agree that the $1.4 trillion deficit is not entirely his fault, though I know Brett will be quick to point out that he did vote for the spending bills while in the Senate.

President Obama has given us no indication whatsoever that he is serious about real spending cuts. This is problematic for the country as the red continues to grow. Tax increases will only hurt individuals and business, especially small business.

No more arbitrary spending cuts, no more spending, it’s time to get serious about reducing the deficit through real spending cuts and scaling back the leviathan that is the federal government.

Congress will vote to raise the debt ceiling by the end of the year:

The Obama administration is confident Congress will raise the country’s debt limit by year end to avert a showdown similar to the one that shuttered parts of the government in 1995, administration officials said.

The White House wants an increase of at least $1 trillion to $1.5 trillion, according to a person familiar with the deliberations between lawmakers and the administration. Record budget deficits are pushing the national debt closer to the $12.1 trillion statutory limit.

An increase in the debt ceiling, the amount of money the federal government can borrow, was tucked away as part of the “stimulus” bill in February. The debt ceiling has been increased five times since March 2006.