New Deficits to Force Boost of Debt Ceiling

Only four years after celebrating the end of chronic deficit spending, Congress soon will be forced once again to raise the federal debt ceiling so that the government can keep operating.

Treasury Secretary Paul H. O'Neill has notified Congress that the current $5.95-trillion debt ceiling could be breached as early as February. He asked lawmakers to move quickly to raise the limit to $6.7 trillion.

"Sure, it's a big deal. Instead of having latitude to do lots of things, we're back to the old business of trying to balance our wishes and our resources," said economist Susan Hering of UBS Warburg, a New York securities firm. "I'm sure it will loom large in the elections."
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Democrats Plan to Tie GOP to Deficits

Democrats are gearing up to lay the responsibility for the return of budget deficits firmly on President Bush and the GOP -- a threat Republicans scoff at, contending the deficit will not be a cutting issue in the middle of a war on terrorism and an economic downturn.

For Democrats, the virtual certainty that federal revenues will not match expenditures -- forcing the government to dip into the Social Security and Medicare trust funds -- vindicates their opposition to Bush's $1.3 trillion tax cut and offers a potent campaign issue for this year's midterm elections.
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thanks to SmirkingChimp.com