After weeks of battling in Congress between Republicans and
Democrats, with the occasional prodding from the White House, a deal has been
reached that is likely to pass both chambers.
Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner warned Congress that if they
did not increase the debt ceiling on August 2 by $2.4 trillion to a total of
$14.29 trillion, the seas would boil, the Earth would belch fire and ashes, “cats
and dogs living together… Mass hysteria!” Actually, he warned that the U.S.
Treasury would not be able to meet its debts.
The Republican-controlled House had significant trouble
passing compromise legislation that would raise the debt ceiling but would also
reduce spending. After all, Republicans, tea party affiliated or no, campaigned
on that promise which yielded the largest GOP midterm landslide since 1938. The
House passed what became known as “Cut, Cap and Balance,” a plan that would
raise the ceiling so long as a amendment to the constitution that would force
the government to balance the budget was passed by 2/3rds majorities in both
Houses of congress and sent to the states.
Debt Crisis Solution: The $5 Trillion Coin
All the while, in the Senate, Minority Leader Mitch
McConnell (R-KY) devised a competing plan that would allow the ceiling to be
raised but by the President alone so Republicans to vote against the subsequent
tax increases that would accompany it and go home saying they met their pledge
to oppose tax increases. That buck-passing was not well received among the House
Republicans. At this point, the bipartisan “Gang of Six” in the Senate created their
own plan that was regarded with equal parts disdain and revulsion by all
parties, with the possible exception of NBC’s Meet the Press host David
Gregory. That plan ceased to exist and has hence forth been referred to as “the
plan that shall not be named.” In the House, Speaker John Boehner (R-OH)
created no less than three compromise plans that resurrected the BBA and
allowed for a debt ceiling increase in two tranches.
The final compromise deal embraces the two-tranche debt
ceiling increase plan and resurrects the BBA in some fashion, and it seemed as
of last night that there was bipartisan support for this deal. Some ill-timed “ball
spiking” by Congressional Republicans appears to have tarnished that assumption.
Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA) suggested that Boehner “grab a Gatorade and smoke a cigarette,”
to which the Boehner responded “how about a merlot and a cigarette.” No
response yet from Gatorade on the diss.
The middle of the
political spectrum is in favor of the measure while the progressive and tea
party wings of Congress members hate the plan. In an artful use of rhetoric, Rep.
Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO), the chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, called
the plan a “Sugar
Coated Satan Sandwich.” He is joined in opposition to the plan by perennial
grump / Red State.com blogger Erick Erickson who writes that the deal will mean
that “taxes
will go up and the Democrats will have won.” Now, even 2012 presidential
candidate and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has come out against
the plan.
A vote is expected in the House this afternoon. I still suspect it will pass, but I’m curious
to see if the positioning on both sides of the aisle is just positioning or if
there is whipping of opposition to the measure going on right now. With less
than 24-hours on the clock, I expect President Obama to demand again that a “grand
bargain” be struck any minute now.
Follow Noah Rothman @Noah_C_Rothman
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