Ahem.
Anyone who remembers the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. little more than five years ago knows what a global financial disaster is. A U.S. government default, just weeks away if Congress fails to raise the debt ceiling as it now threatens to do, will be an economic calamity like none the world has ever seen.
Failure by the world’s largest borrower to pay its debt — unprecedented in modern history — will devastate stock markets from Brazil to Zurich, halt a $5 trillion lending mechanism for investors who rely on Treasuries, blow up borrowing costs for billions of people and companies, ravage the dollar and throw the U.S. and world economies into a recession that probably would become a depression. Among the dozens of money managers, economists, bankers, traders and former government officials interviewed for this story, few view a U.S. default as anything but a financial apocalypse.
Your move, John Boehner.
Given that all the effects of a default are exactly what the tea party wants – a collapsing economy under america’s first black president – I’d say that the “moderate” republicans better get their asses in gear and get a discharge petition going with Nancy Pelosi unless they want to lose their shirts. When the hell are these guys going to realize they’re being driven over a cliff?
Common sense dictates that he would never truly allow something so dire. Since the last time we even flirted with such a crazy idea, the Dow tanked almost 800 points. Imagine the result if we actually defaulted. But I do have a real gut fear that things have become so unhinged that there is a real possibility that these nuts would allow it to happen. And even if they don’t, but take us right to the brink once again, the consequences will still be catastrophic. And yet, I hear a lot of people around me cheering on a default.
I’m nervous.
The Times article yesterday detailing the extent to which this whole thing has been planned for more than a year, that the Kochs are funneling money to make it happen and keep all republicans in line with bribes and threats, really floored me. Until seeing that, I saw this as the tea bag right having a fit that cooler heads would finally contain. But that is not it at all. It’s the whole damn party. As a friend of mine wrote last night, we are witnessing nothing less than an attempted coup.
At worst, they’ll kick the can down the road.
Which means what? That would appear to set the table for the Tea Party contingent to continue to chip away at this until they get what they want.
Kicking the can down the road does not seem to me to do much of anything toward killing the zombie. Won’t this just perpetuate what is currently going on?
The endgame is California. Shrink the republican party to the point that it can no longer disrupt the workings of government.
It goes to show that when you stop at nothing to make a one-party state, you will eventually get it. No guarantee that the one party will be yours, though.
Well, short-term, it means that the WH will let Boehner buy a little time, but it won’t negotiate with him.
well, needless to say, this whole thing is killing me.
It’s kind of like being forced to watch your favorite uncle have to defuse a massive bomb.
Whatever Boehner’s doing, I don’t think it can properly be called bluffing. Those “leaks” about him not allowing a default to happen on his watch weren’t accidental, although it’s a bit hard to guess what they were intended to accomplish–presumably to reassure somebody, corporate GOP donors, establishment figures, god knows.
This new talk about heading for default coming on the heels of the leaks is a bit bizarre and confusing, but “bluff” doesn’t seem to be the right term. Maybe he’s just cracking up.
Swear to God, if this debt ceiling is not repealed in any agreement that gets hammered out, it will be deliberate political suicide.
It should have been included in the 2011 disaster. It was malpractice of the highest order not to do so.
John Boehner made his move. NPR is talking up Grand Bargain, Grand Bargain, Grand Bargain.
GOP is still trying to roll President Obama. Sure hope the President is ready to deal with October 21 because it looks like the GOP in the House are going to take the boat over the falls.
He made his bluff.
Bluff are moves. Still trying to delay facing up to it. Still looking for the Hail Mary play.
Totally lost upon these idiots is the increased cost of borrowing.
No, you see, Erin Burnett used some “valuable” CNN broadcast time to bring on some financial nobody who told us that violating the debt ceiling wouldn’t be THAT bad. This was in the very first segment of her show. So, why sully her beautiful mind with Debbie Downer economic realities? She knows a guy; the guy says it’s OK.
BTW, doesn’t that horrible woman have a bond trader for a husband?
I’m trying to figure out what happens if to US currency if we go over the edge. I figure it will bottom out, and I’ll be screwed.
What happens when we go over the edge depends on what the Treasury (that is President Obama and Jack Lew) does.
There are financial actions that will satisfy borrowers that the good faith and credit of the US is still sound.
But the actions might infuriate the GOP at having had their doomsday device disarmed. So the politics has to come out of it as much a pleasant surprise as the Syria deal for the President to avoid a House attempt at impeachment.
There has been much discussion on economics and financial blogs about what those possible actions are.
Link? Anything that shoves the clown law known as the debt limit to the side is something I’d like to read.
Best possible scenario:
Republicans bring us to 11:59:59
Obama chimes in citing 14th Amendment, pays debts.
World cheers because US President shows that US debts really are dependable, that no US President would allow default.
Moron Republicans throw fit that credit rating of US not destroyed, Impeach Obama.
Senate and Pubic overwhelmingly support Obama, Republicans lose House in 2014 and never get it back again.
That is the best case scenario. Either we stomp on the neck of the Republicans and DEMONIZE them, or they win.
I’m hoping that some big money Wall Street type is giving Boehner the Ned Beatty “Force of Nature” speech just about now.
We’ll default. Boehner will be a deer in the head lights, incapable of acting.
I would not be surprised if the Koch Brothers have amassed a vast cash position in hopes that the USA does default and that the markets crash. No better time to have cash than that, and why would they have spent so money to blow up the system that has benefited them so well?
Deluded? Remember the Hunt Brothers of Texas who came close to cornering the market on silver in March of 1980.
That would indeed be a bad thing for (most of) those on passive income. Would need to start working or something.