Republicans Preying on People

Very insightful.

But I would dismiss the 0-44 vote by Senate Dems in 2006 as a meaningless protest vote, since at that point they did not control either house and did not have the votes to defeat a debt-ceiling increase in the same way Boehner et al. currently can. It would impress me more if you or Finn could link to an article about how the Dems filibustered a debt-ceiling increase. (I don't think one exists.) Until I see an article like that I'll consider the 0-44 vote a meaningless (if misguided) protest vote.

You can tell the Dems weren't serious about stopping the measure, since the same people could have voted unanimously against an increase in 2007 like they had in 2006; but instead the measure passed with bipartisan support.

One insight I will take away from your post is that Obama can BS people with the best them (because either he was bullshitting us then or is doing so now).

House Minority Leader Pelosi

In 2006, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) Decried A “Debt Ceiling Of $9 Trillion.”

“But part of the Democrats’ plan is a call to require fiscal responsibility, following pay-as-you-go rules that prevent deficit spending. And they note that it is under a Republican president and Congress that the federal deficit has soared to new levels. ‘This is the path we were on when President Clinton was president, and we would have been debt free as a nation if we had stayed on that course of pay-as-you-go, no deficit spending, debt free as a nation in 2008,’ Pelosi said. ‘Instead, we have a debt ceiling of $9 trillion.’” (Jill Zuckman, “Democrats Promise ‘A New Direction For All Americans,’” Chicago Tribune, 6/15/06)

In 2004, Pelosi Voted Against The House Resolution to Increase The Debt Ceiling. (S. 2986, Roll Call Vote #536: Approved 208-204: R 206-2; D 2-193; I 0-1, 1/18/04, Pelosi Voted Nay)

Gross Federal Debt At The Time Totaled $7 Trillion. (“The Debt To The Penny And Who Holds It,” U.S. Treasury, Accessed 9/27/13)

Pelosi Explained Her Soon-To-Be No-Vote, Saying “We Just Can’t Give A Blank Check Over And Over And Over Again To This Administration.” “Democrats plan to use the debt limit debate to highlight the massive annual deficits run up during the Bush administration. Many will oppose the measure, especially in the House. The bill is expected to be approved anyway, with the Senate voting Thursday night and the timing of the House vote uncertain. Its defeat would threaten an unprecedented federal default and stymie the government’s ability to write Social Security and other checks. ‘We just can’t give a blank check over and over and over again to this administration,’ said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.”
(Alan Fram, “GOP Election Victory Shaping Budget Bills,” The Associated Press, 11/17/04)

Pelosi Lamented A Debt Ceiling Increase Of $2 Trillion In 4 Years. Saying These Figures Were “Absolutely Astounding.” REP. PELOSI: “In the course of the President’s administration now, this 4 years, it will have been raised $2 trillion. This is absolutely astounding in terms of these figures.
(Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Congressional Record, 11/18/04, H. 9982)

Pelosi Said She Will “Vote Against This Irresponsible Lifting Of The Debt Ceiling Unless There Is A Responsible Discipline Thrust Upon It Of Pay-As-You-Go Or A Plan From The President To Say How He Intends To Reduce The Deficit.”

PELOSI: “So I urge all of my colleagues to support our motion to commit which will accommodate, will give the government a chance to go forward, but also to put a limit on this profligate increase in the debt. I hope at the end of the evening, though, that everyone who stands up for fiscal soundness will vote against this irresponsible lifting of the debt ceiling unless there is a responsible discipline thrust upon it of pay-as-you-go or a plan from the President to say how he intends to reduce the deficit.”
(Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Congressional Record, 11/18/04, H. 9982)




Obama Has Alleged That The Debt Ceiling Has Never Been Used As A Negotiating Tactic To Achieve Legislative Concessions.

OBAMA: “You have never seen in the history of the United States the debt ceiling or the threat of not raising the debt ceiling being used to extort a President or a governing party, and trying to force issues that have nothing to do with the budget and have nothing to do with the debt.”

(President Barack Obama, Remarks At The Business Roundtable, Washington, D.C., 9/18/13)


Since 1978, More Than Half Of The Increases In The Debt Limit Have Been Accompanied By Legislation Dealing With Other Matters. (Justin Murray, “Votes On Measures To Adjust The Statutory Debt Limit, 1978 To Present,” Congressional Research Service, 2/15/13)



The Washington Post’s The Fact Checker Gave Obama Four Pinnochio’s For The Remark. (Glenn Kessler, “Obama’s Claim That Non-Budget Items Have ‘Never’ Been Attached To The Debt Ceiling,” The Washington Post’s The Fact Checker, 9/19/13)

“Obama’s Sweeping Statement Does Not Stand Up To Scrutiny, Even With His Caveat. Time And Again, Lawmakers Have Used The ‘Must-Pass’ Nature Of The Debt Limit To Force Changes In Unrelated Laws.”

Time and again, lawmakers have used the ‘must-pass’ nature of the debt limit to force changes in unrelated laws. Often, the effort fails — as the GOP drive to repeal Obamacare almost certainly will.

But Kowalcky and LeLoup speculate that one reason why Congress has not eliminated the debt limit, despite the political problems it poses, is because lawmakers enjoy the leverage it provides against the executive branch.

Ain't that the truth!