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Out-of-Control Spending Brings Calls for Debt Ceiling Increase

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Out-of-Control Spending Brings Calls for Debt Ceiling Increase
Will Congress Block Insurer Bailout Included in Healthcare Law?
 

(Washington, D.C.) – It is expected that by this Friday, February 7, the federal government will 'hit the debt ceiling' – meaning it will have reached the legal limit on borrowing. Because government spending is expected to exceed revenue by more than $500 billion in 2014, the President has asked Congress to increase the borrowing limit to allow this spending to continue unabated. The ceiling has been increased, suspended, or adjusted 7 times during the Obama Administration. It is not expected that Congress will act before Friday; instead the Treasury Department will implement measures that allow it to avoid violating the debt ceiling until it is raised.
 
In past occasions where the debt ceiling has been raised, Congress has required deficit reduction measures to be included in the legislation. Some in the House of Representatives are now debating whether to attach a provision to block some corporate bailouts as part of the debt ceiling increase. Specifically, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, guarantees that insurers who lose money on the sale of health policies could receive money from the federal government to compensate for those losses. This insurer bailout is opposed by 65 percent of the American people, according to a recent poll.
  
Daniel Garza, Executive Director of The LIBRE Initiative released the following statement:

"Once again, Washington has failed to seriously address the nation's spending problem, and so is forced to consider an increase in the national borrowing limit. The government is currently more than $17 trillion in debt – debt financed by private individuals, foreign governments, and the Federal Reserve. Instead of taking the problem seriously, the President and Congress recently agreed on a budget deal that raised the deficit by $41 billion over the next two years. Senate leaders have said that chamber may not even pass a budget, and President Obama will submit his annual fiscal plan more than a month past the legal deadline. This is reckless and irresponsible.

The President and Congress should work together to curb federal overspending. Saving taxpayers and ratepayers from a costly corporate bailout is a step worth taking, but more action is needed. The United States will add an estimated $6 trillion to the debt over the next 10 years if we continue on this course. This growing debt burden weighs heavily on entrepreneurs and middle-income families. It weakens our economy, hurts economic growth, and encourages inflation. It's time Washington confronts fiscal reality and changes course, for the sake of our children and grandchildren."

For interviews with a LIBRE representative, please contact: Brian Faughnan 571-247-3309 or Steven Cruz 202-578-6173.