The Good, Bad, & the Ugly of the Debt Ceiling Deal
As many prognosticated, the republicans’ reckless game of chicken over the debt ceiling failed.
President Biden didn’t even have to invoke the 14th Amendment, which unambiguously states:
The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned.
Naturally, as with every negotiation, there were some compromises, some good, others not.
Some media outlets are hailing “the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023” a rousing success for Biden and the Democrats.
Others, though, are zeroing on members of the Democratic caucus feeling like they just handed republicans the keys to White House in 2024.
The deal allows both sides to claim a victory of sorts. Biden called it a “compromise” while Republican House speaker Kevin McCarthy described it as “worthy of the American people.”
The good.
The bill agrees to a two-year debt ceiling increase of $31.4 trillion, eliminating the need to repeat this whole unnecessary charade before the presidential election.
