Stakes too high for theatrics on debt ceiling

Hink of the national budget as a structure. If the contents expand over time, the ceiling must be raised. If not, the structure will falter, and the country will falter with it. Our leaders cannot let that happen.

TPresident Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin Mccarthy have been wrangling over the debt ceiling for weeks, but it has been theater, conducted in the press. Until now. The real battle began Wednesday, when Biden and Mccarthy met to discuss the issue.

Both men said the talks went “well,” but it is early, and weeks, perhaps months, of tough negotiations lie ahead. This is an age of bitter polarization, but the debt ceiling is too critical for the usual posturing that places ideology above policy. Democrats and Republicans must do what they were elected to do — act in the interest of the country.

The debt ceiling caps the limit of federal debt, and when the debt has been incurred, as it has now, the ceiling must be raised. The limit was set at $31.4 trillion on Jan. 18, but the Treasury Department has taken what experts call “extraordinary” measures to keep the limit from “binding.” Those measures will be enough to keep the economy going through early June, after which the government will lack the money to pay its debts.

If the ceiling is not raised, the negative consequences could include a recession. The default would hit the poor and elderly especially hard, including Medicare recipients and Social Security beneficiaries. As one segment of the population is hit, others would follow, with the dominoes tumbling across the economic landscape.

The potentially disastrous consequences, however, do not end there. Financial markets could be disrupted, with a corresponding drop in confidence from consumers across the country. Stocks are fragile, reacting to the slightest hint of pessimism, and the result would be more economic pain.

“The president and I had a first good meeting — I shared my perspective with him, he shared his,” Mccarthy told reporters afterward. “No agreements, no promises, except that we would continue this conversation.”

The White House echoed those sentiments.

“President Biden made clear that, as every other leader in both parties in Congress has affirmed, it is their shared duty not to allow an unprecedented and economically catastrophic default,” the White House said. “It is not negotiable or conditional.”

It is easy to understand why Republicans, emboldened by the House majority they gained in the midterm elections, would seize on an issue that appeals to their base — wasteful spending. But the stance is disingenuous. Congress raised the debt ceiling three times during the Trump administration, a period during which the deficit grew 17 percent in 2018, a year after his tax cuts were passed — the largest annual jump since 2012. “Show me your budget, I’ll show you mine,” Biden said Monday before his meeting with Mccarthy in the Oval Office.

Mccarthy did not respond, following a pattern he has set since assuming the speakership Jan. 7. We see this recalcitrance on both sides of the aisle — tough talk followed by weak follow-through.

Enough. This is a serious dilemma that requires action, not speechifying.

The president and the speaker will meet again, and the cordiality they seemed to establish in their first discussion is a good sign. Pleasantries are not enough, however, and comments that the talks went “well” are not enough, either. Such remarks reflect stasis, not progress.

Republicans are right about one thing. There fat in the budget; there always has been. It should be eliminated, but it cannot be eliminated if it is not identified. Mccarthy has, thus far, failed to identify it.

On the positive side, Mccarthy indicated he will not touch Social Security, although some Republican colleagues keep targeting the program. Americans eligible to draw Social Security remain wary. They deserve a resolution on the debt ceiling that will give them a firm answer.

At this point, with time being critical, Republicans should cease their posturing and do what is right — raise the debt ceiling. Then they should come back with a sober, intelligent plan to combat wasteful spending during the next budgetary discussions. The issue is too critical for the same old theatrics.

Democrats, GOP have a responsibility — to do what’s best for nation