Politico writes, “The looming debt ceiling fight may look like a classic “who will blink first” Washington debate, with a ticking time bomb waiting at the end. But for lawmakers like Pat Toomey, Steve Scalise and Daniel Webster, there’s no reason for Republicans to blink — because the time bomb is a dud. To these conservatives, hitting the debt ceiling is no Armageddon, and the idea of “default” is just a scare tactic – and they claim not to be frightened.” … “Never mind the array of corporate leaders, analysts and establishment Republicans who say they’re dangerously off-base, and Obama’s warnings at a Monday news conference that markets would “go haywire” and Social Security payments would be delayed if Congress fails to raise the debt ceiling in the coming two months.” … “What would happen if the debt ceiling isn’t raised is … a partial government shutdown,” incoming Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said last week on conservative talk radio, praising Republicans who shut down the government in 1995 and encouraging them to do the same with the debt debate. Keith Hennessey, an economist in the George W. Bush administration, acknowledged the difference between “default” and “technical default” but criticized the prioritization idea in a blog post Monday. It would be the “first step to becoming a banana republic,” Hennessey said.
18
Jan 2013
