Dr. Frankenstein attempts to call off his rampaging monster

Posted: 11/19/10 at 1:27pm

"Many newly elected Republican members of Congress explicitly refused to raise the federal debt ceiling during their campaigns. Problem is, the federal debt ceiling kinda needs to be raised, soon! Can John Boehner get these kids to do it?

We're going to have to deal with it as adults," he said, in what apparently are his most explicit comments to date. "Whether we like it or not, the federal government has obligations and we have obligations on our part."

We're all going to die.
Please don't destroy the economy

[madbrian]

Posted: 11/19/10 at 1:38pm

And that is a trivial concern, compared to the fact that a single US Senator can stop the debt ceiling from being raised all by himself or herself. Does the name Rand Paul ring a bell?

That said, I do like the 'put up or shut up' dilemma these folks will be facing. The Dems are now putting the GOP on the spot regarding taxes, the START treaty, DADT, and unemployment. For the life of me, however, I can't figure out why they didn't do this BEFORE THE MIDTERM ELECTION!!!

Oh, and to clarify, refusing to raise the debt ceiling is much, much more than shutting down the government, which is done via the budget. Refusing to raise the debt ceiling would cause a global economic collapse.

Updated On: 11/19/10 at 01:38 PM

Posted: 11/19/10 at 1:48pm

Brian I doubt the Tea Partiers would be able to come up with 41 votes in the senate against raising the debt ceiling. Rand can cast his symbolic vote without too much worry.

And honestly, I think there is VERY little chance that the measure won't pass the house by a pretty solid margin. The real issue will be Tea Bag rage against those Republicans who do vote to raise the debt ceiling. They have already proven themselves to be a wildly impractical bunch, driven by ideology and immune to common sense.

Posted: 11/19/10 at 1:51pm

Huh- I didn't remember the last increase passed along party lines 60-39. So The Republicans ARE going to have to make a very hard choice. Could be interesting.

[madbrian]

Posted: 11/19/10 at 1:53pm

This goes back to the arcane rules of the US Senate. It doesn't require a filibuster, a single senator can stop/delay this. The same way a single senator can stop appointments to the bench or the administration.