It appears the debt ceiling problem has been “fixed”. The thing is, it wasn’t broken to begin with. The hysteria around it is all based on the lies politicians are telling and the media are happily parroting. They talk about the country meeting its obligations, fulfilling the fiscal promises it made. Good, sensible talk about finances designed to cloak the truth. They say if we don’t raise the debt limit we will default on our loans and have to stop writing Social Security checks. But it is a lie. Let’s do some math.
The IRS collects around 200 billion (yes, with a “b”) in taxes a month. The principal and interest on our debt loans is around $29 billion a month. I went to school many years ago, and maybe math has changed, but I don’t think so. I’m pretty sure $29 billion is less than $200 billion. Seems like we have more than enough to cover it. So no, we won’t default on our financial obligations. And that leaves us with $171 billion a month. So what about Social Security?
Our president has also stated he may not be able to pay Social Security recipients if the debt ceiling is not raised. Like so many Democrats before him, he has dipped into that tired but effective strategy of scaring the crap out of the old people. It almost always works. So will the senior citizens of the nation go on a forced diet if the debt ceiling stays the same? Only if the president wants them to. More math.
The monthly bill for Social Security is around $60 billion. We had around $171 billion left over each month after paying down the “financial obligations” the president has been so worried about. Again, been a while since I’ve taken a math class, but the math books we’re using for homeschool still indicate that $171 billion > $60 billion. With a lot of room to spare. We would still have $111 billion a month to operate the government with.
These scare tactics are just that. They are not based in reality. If we never raised the debt limit we would still be more than able to cover our debt payments and Social Security. So why all of the fuss?
It is the same as the president barricading national parks during the shutdown. They have to make it hurt if they are going to get their way. Remember all of the wailing and gnashing of teeth about how the sequester was going to hurt people? Do you even remember the sequester? It was a 1.5% budget cut that made no difference in anyone’s life. But those in power can’t have people realizing that they would be fine with less government. So I am sure that, though the money is there, the president would elect to not pay the two bills that would have the most dire consequences. Just like they made a decision to do what hurt the most during the shutdown. But if, as I’ve just shown, the US doesn’t have to default or stop paying SS, what is this fight really over?
After acknowledging that the money is there to cover the two items most often used to bully the people, The Washington Post summed up the situation succinctly: “There’s only one problem: Without borrowing, we’d have to cut the budget by $1.5 trillion.” And there it is, folks. They are addicted to spending money. The thought of not being able to sends most of them into fits. So the fight is not over being able to pay our debt and seniors, the money is clearly there for them, it is over not having to tighten our belts at all. They want to be able to continue with their ruinous spending habits.
Not sure this post will change anyone’s mind but I feel better for the truth being out there at all. People aren’t getting it from any of the normal news providers. I think most people will still want the federal government to do everything it does, but at least they can make that decision based on facts instead of the falsehoods being pushed by the politicians and “journalists”.
The Same Deep Water As You 