squandering global leadership
real abandonment of rules-based commitments
My thoughts today are angry and brief. They follow the theatrics which occurred yesterday over the debt ceiling negotiations.
Recapping the facts: the United States Government (Legislative and Executive branches elected by and representing us all) must raise the limit on how much it can borrow to continue repaying loans for money already spent. There is nothing more complicated about this, like it or not.
If we do not meet our debt obligations when the Government’s spending authority reaches its current negotiated, legal limit, we will not only default on our payment and throw away the 243 year old full faith and credit in this nation’s commitments.
We will also enter the same status as China, Russia, and other states selectively rewriting the rules-based international system. I know of no other way to put it: we committed to repaying our debts when we assumed them. Not raising the debt limit makes that repayment legally impossible. That is selectively rewriting the rules-based international order.
We will sacrifice our moral position as adhering to the rules-based international system. We will see those states opposing that system use our behaviour as justification for our own.
We will squander our position of leadership.
That irresponsible behaviour by Americans pretending to ‘lead this nation’ would be crossing a rubicon of unparalleled damage.
We must raise the debt ceiling before a default.FIN
This is exactly right. And this negotiation isn’t new - it’s been done before, and clean debt ceilings have been passed recently. It should be done again, now. But, even assuming this is an appropriate time for one party to press it’s leverage, (and I don’t think it is), the things being negotiated over are ridiculous as they, too, represent commitments made to people. Particularly the weaker and more vulnerable people. And regardless of your take on what spending we should or shouldn’t undertake, default will make ALL our spending more costly, and cost business, industry, and people a lot of money. We saw what threats of default did before. Actual default will cost far more money than we need to pay. It’s bad for the U.S., and bad for our stakeholders, and bad for our international standing.
Agree we need to up the debt limit. But, we also need to curb our spending. If not, the Federal Debt Servicing will soon consume us.
Regards — Cliff