Congress comes back this week from summer vacation with a veritable schmidt load of items on their agenda. First up is whether or not to strike Syria. As of right now, support looks pretty thin in the House. Shocking, that the House GOP would use any means to fuck over the president. My oh my how the hawks have become doves...
Of course, the president is getting much support on the left either so his address to the nation better be a home run tomorrow night otherwise he won't get the vote. Contrary to the media hysterics, if he loses the vote, this will not be the end of his presidency. Congress did not support FDR during the 1930s regarding Hitler's march across Europe. Congress did not support President Kennedy during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. Anyone remember who those people were?
The budget is probably the next item on the list to tackle and we are already hearing signs of playing chicken again with the debt limit. It seems we will have a large group of people that don't understand that it's money we have already spent. Worse, far too many still haven't grasped the concept of the difference between individual debt and government debt. I'm sure we'll be hearing the anti-spending old ladies out in full force over the next few weeks.
Immigration is likely to take a back seat which is really a drag as reform could solve many of our other economic problems. I was impressed with Marco Rubio and his fellow Senators for coming up with a great bill to address this issue. Unfortunately, it has now come to the short wave radio listening Civil War reinactors in the House so that means it's going nowhere.
Oh, and doesn't the ACA roll out on October 1?
This is going to be one exciting fall!
9 comments:
It seems we will have a large group of people that don't understand that it's money we have already spent.
Then quit spending it......
Because too many people think that government debt somehow is different.
Government debt is different. The federal debt is incurred when the government issues Treasure Bills, or T-bills. These have been some of the best investments around in the last decade, because the government always pays it back. Foreign investors, like the Chinese, have sunk trillions of dollars into US Treasury bills.
Exactly what the government invests that money in is important: if we invest it in projects like bridges, roads, basic scientific research, improved health care and education for children and so on, it pays off big dividends for years to come. When we blow it on invading Middle Eastern countries, bonuses for bank execs, tax cuts for billionaires and propping up foreign dictators, it's a complete waste.
Of course, government debt can get out of control. But we're not at that stage now; the deficit this year is going to be significantly smaller than it was last year, and it's continuing to go down. Part of that is because of the improving economy, part of it is due to sequestration.
I have nothing to add to Nikto's comment!
I have a perfect credit score and have always paid back my debts. Is my debt the same as government debt then?
Personal debt and government debt are two different things, GD. Your financial goals are different from the government's goals. You have a limited lifespan. The government exists indefinitely. Your economy is different from the government's economy. The very nature of your debt is different. Do you have people around the world clamoring to invest in your debt? Do you owe money to yourself?
Recall this...
http://markadelphia.blogspot.com/2012/01/true-gem.html
Remember, other countries owe us as well. I suggest you reread the Krugman piece and, please, enough with the adolescent hysterics.
You have as very simple minded view of economics. You cannot owe yourself money, that's been shown to you multiple times. The difference in scale does not change math. People want to loan me money for the same reason they do the government, profit. Every government falls.
An, yes, the "you've been shown this" chestnut...a classic. It's not my fault that you keep repeating the same mistake over and over again.
We do owe ourselves money, GD. That's what makes government debt different. Countries like China also owe us money. Are you owed money by the same institutions that you owe money to? Again, another difference.
This would go a lot easier if you just admitted that you were hysterical about government spending.
It would be a lot easier if you had a clue.
We do owe ourselves money, GD.
And how does that money get paid [back] to ourselves M?
Also you have it backwards, we owe China. They don't owe us - they are who we borrowed from. As a debtholder they damn sure expect to get paid - interest and principal.
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