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Bernanke to Congress: Do your job, Pay the Bills

by Bill McBride on 1/14/2013 05:35:00 PM

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke was very clear. The “debt ceiling” is about paying the bills, not about new spending. He urged congress to do their job, raise the debt ceiling, and pay the bills. His preference was to abolish the “debt ceiling” since it is redundant.

From the WSJ: Bernanke Calls on Congress to Raise Debt Ceiling

“It’s very, very important that Congress take the necessary action to raise the debt ceiling to avoid the situation where the government doesn’t pay its bills,” said Mr. Bernanke ... “Raising the debt ceiling gives the government the ability to pay its existing bills–it doesn’t create new spending,” he said.

At another point, Bernanke said the “debt ceiling” has “symbolic value”, but he prefers eliminating it. He was very clear that Congress should do their job and raise the debt ceiling.

Bernanke also expressed concern about the long run sustainability of the debt (over decades), but that we also shouldn’t cut the deficit too quickly and impact the “fragile recovery”. He thought the fiscal cliff deal would subtract about 1.5% from GDP this year.

CR Note: As I’ve noted before, the “debt ceiling” sounds virtuous, but it is really just about paying the bills. Not paying the bills is reckless and irresponsible.

By stalling, Congress is scaring people and is probably already negatively impacting the economy. Congress should do their job. Today. I remain confident Congress will authorize paying the bills, but this delaying is embarrassing.

“It’s very, very important that Congress take the necessary action to raise the debt ceiling to avoid the situation where the government doesn’t pay its bills,”

yet

“debt ceiling” has “symbolic value”

Good grief, this guy is just a crony whose job is to keep the grifting/debt running smoothly/growing. The Federal government has plenty of assets to sell off that would of payed for TARP, the Treasury, and serving preexisting debt. Bernanke in the private sector and public officials who were covering for the problems they unleashed on the financial sector (Which screwed the pooch) should of not had their loses socialized. My kids and their kids should not have to deal with the mistakes that past generations have placed on them, like half-baked Keynsian policies that only deal with the here and now. Enjoy admiring your witch doctors, they sure have you spellbound.

Debt ceiling = responsibility, it should be lowered not abolished. Bernanke is drinking Keynes' Flavor-aid. Like I said, the Fed gov have trillions in assets they could sell off without raising taxes and thousands of regulatory "decrees" if eliminated that would grow the economy (Thus more receipts) to pay their bills, but your heroes in the economic world are arguing to just green light more spending/debt growth by calling for the end of this "symbolic" ceiling. I guess your groupie mentality has blinded your being able to see the end game going on; Bernanke's insistence that Congress should have the perpetual freedom to grow the debt to infinite and not be restrained by "symbolism". Bernanke's words brings orgasms to tax and spenders, yet he is brilliant or whatever undeserving glorifying adjective you used for him.