Increased Debt Ceiling Fails to Abate Continued Decline, Eventual Collapse

The latest Patriot Post Digest reports:

Congress passed and the president signed the increase in the debt ceiling Tuesday, and that, as Leftmedia outlets rejoiced, ended the "crisis" just hours before the default deadline. On the other hand, the Left is grousing that the Tea Party got everything it wanted. But did the deal really end the crisis? Hardly. World markets plummeted in its wake -- the Dow fell 512 points Thursday, erasing all gains from 2011, evoking this response from the White House: "Markets go up and down." Furthermore, credit rating agencies continued to warn of a looming downgrade of the nation's AAA rating. And did the Tea Party come out with everything it wanted? Not a chance. On the contrary, the ship is still sinking. The Tea Party and the markets know that, despite all the back-patting in Washington.

Those responsible for our continued (and hastened) financial decline are still slinging muck at each other instead of working on practical solutions. Our debt, rather than our economy, has been given a significant increase, having a massive negative result on the Dow. Has anyone else's 401k taken another dive yet?

The $2.4 trillion debt ceiling increase is the biggest ever. In fact, total U.S. debt didn't reach $2.4 trillion until 1987. Immediately on Tuesday, the Treasury borrowed another $239 billion -- the largest one-day debt binge in history -- bringing total federal debt to $14.532 trillion, or just over 100 percent of our gross domestic product. Debt has not exceeded GDP since 1947 -- immediately after World War II -- and 30 years ago it was just 32.5 percent of GDP. Could there be a connection between the market collapse and this debt "milestone"?

Democrats foisted upon the nation the biggest Keynesian spending bonanza in history, and the result has been almost no GDP growth, headline unemployment exceeding 9 percent (despite 117,000 new jobs in July), decreased consumer spending, inflation, debt as far as our great-grandchildren can see and a possible national credit rating downgrade.

On Aug. 3, 2010, Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner penned an op-ed for The New York Times titled "Welcome to the Recovery." That rings awfully hollow now. In fact, many think that we're headed for a double-dip recession.

Welcome to the beginning of the end is more appropriate.

As for debt "deal" specifics, the House passed the increase 269-161, despite opposition from many Democrats and Tea Party Republicans. The Senate followed suit 74-26. Congress then quickly left for August recess. Barack Obama also signed the increase Tuesday saying the deal was "an important first step for ensuring that, as a nation, we live within our means." He even said it with a straight face.

On the contrary, "living within our means" doesn't actually seem to be part of the plan. The debt ceiling was immediately increased by $400 billion. By the end of September, another $500 billion increase is subject to a congressional vote of "disapproval," and Obama can veto that measure. After that, a "blue ribbon" joint committee of Congress (six members from each chamber, divided equally between Democrats and Republicans) will meet to recommend another $1.5 trillion in deficit reduction by Nov. 23, which Congress must take up by Dec. 23, in exchange for that much more in debt. If the committee or Congress fails, which is possible, if not probable, the debt ceiling will increase by $1.2 trillion anyway, with across-the-board cuts -- including to ObamaCare -- equal to that amount kicking in automatically.

Adding insult to injury, every spending cut is over 10 years, while every debt increase is immediate. So even with the deal, the forecast for the next decade is still trillions more in debt. As Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), who voted against the bill, put it, "It eliminates no program, consolidates no duplicative programs, cuts no tax earmarks and reforms no entitlement program. The specter of default or a credit downgrade will still hang over our economy after this deal becomes law." Is that what the Tea Party wanted?

"The White House doesn't create jobs." --White House Press Secretary Jay Carney

This Keen-Sense-of-the-Obvious moment is quite a change from all the administration's claims of millions of jobs "saved or created" via the "stimulus."

Obama takes credit when the administration helps to spur the economy, but fails to accept responsibility when it's actions do more damage than good when we can't afford to have any more massive mistakes in government action.

In perhaps the only heart-warming aspect of the debt-ceiling debacle, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) returned to Congress to cast her vote for the first time since being shot in the head in Tucson in January. Her recovery has been incredible, and we wish her well.

Her return, however, provided a striking picture of the hypocrisy of the Left. When she was shot, leftists couldn't say enough to blame so called "right-wing hate speech" for the shooting. Now, it's leftists who are employing "destroy," "hostage," "terrorist" and even "gun-to-the-head" metaphors to describe the Republican approach to the debt ceiling.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said that, for Republicans, "It isn't about reducing the deficit, it is about destroying the public space. It is about destroying ... federal involvement in education. It's about clean air, clean water, food safety, public safety. You name it, they're there to diminish it. Destroy it." (New Democrat bumper sticker: "Republicans Hate Clean Water -- Vote Democrat".)

Giffords, we should mention, voted "yes" on the debt increase.

I guess being shot in the head didn't give her a new found sense of perspective.

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