What will happen if Congress doesn’t raise the federal debt limit? – By Jon Healey (The LA Times) / Sept 21 2021
When power in Washington is split between Democrats and Republicans, chances are good that lawmakers will reach an impasse over what once was a routine part of the budget process: raising the federal debt limit. We’ve seen it in 1985, 1995 (a standoff that lasted into 1996), 2002, 2003, 2011, 2013, 2014 and 2015, and it’s happening again this year.
“Republicans are united in opposition to raising the debt ceiling,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Sept. 14, reiterating a pledge that 46 members of his caucus made in August. He emphasized that Republicans think the debt ceiling should be raised, but they don’t want to be the ones to do it — it’s the Democrats’ responsibility, McConnell said, because they were the ones trying to vastly increase federal spending.
Democrats counter that the debt limit would need to be raised even if no new spending were approved. “Increasing or suspending the debt limit does not increase government spending, nor does it authorize spending for future budget proposals; it simply allows Treasury to pay for previously enacted expenditures,” Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen wrote in a July 23 letter to congressional leaders. “The current level of debt reflects the cumulative effect of all prior spending and tax decisions, which have been made by administrations and Congresses of both parties over time.”
