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WSJ Washington Bureau Chief Jerry Seib on the debate over the debt ceiling.
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Yeah.
-- -- for more on the debt debate will house Republicans decide to use the debt ceiling is left rates for spending cuts.
We gotta bring in Jerry -- plots against Washington bureau chief Jerry I'm glad you're here because you know what's going on.
Where are we where are the GOP right now as far as the debt ceiling goes.
Well I wish I knew and I'd be happy to tell if I did but I think there's a choice to be made here and I think they're they're coming up on a discussion point as you mention is that -- they're gonna have later this weekend which maybe they'll have to decide what the strategy is here.
I think that Republicans have a have a choice one is to take a stand on the debt ceiling use that as leverage try to extract some spending cuts out of the White House.
Or to not use that because it's it's a very sensitive subject as you've been discussing with market implications.
And maybe move on to have this the showdown over spending over an actual spending bill the continuing resolution that continues to fund the government which shall expire in March.
And the sequestration in the automatic cuts that are gonna kick in about the same time.
In other words is that is the best tool here to use the debt ceiling or Tibet best tools to use a spending bill and there are a lot of people leadership who think let's not touch the debt -- argument that's toxic.
Let's focus on spending bills because that's really the subject at hand.
I am especially for the American people the last thing may want to hear is that we're gonna raise this debt ceiling again.
And you know the notion that we -- back in December and they use the little accounting trickery to -- some time.
I think that's really disheartening as well.
Well but that's been done before and that's -- -- right now we've already hit the debt ceiling and that's I think what isn't commonly realized.
The question is do you wanna -- draw a line there and mess around with -- market reaction already won a draw a line on funding the government if you're not gonna fund the government your option is to shut down the government.
Maybe -- wanna resort to drastic measures you ought to talk about a threat to shut down the government not a threat to default on America's debt.
As -- said that's the kind of the interesting choice that the Republicans are going to be talking about over the next few days.
And you know the White House who prefer to have none of the above I but if -- gonna use leverage which is the smartest leverage my news.
Talk about that is it legal for the treasury to prioritize its bills basically I mean.
Regardless of what happens were probably still gonna make our interest payments are.
Well that's kind of the argument that submerged in the last couple days Republicans are saying look there's no threat of default here.
If we hit the debt ceiling it just means the government can only spend as much revenue as is coming in on any given day.
You can use that to pay back bondholders to pay interest on the debt therefore you are technically in default.
And the government the federal government the executive branch shall simply have to decide what other bills it can and can't pay.
President Obama at -- press conference yesterday essentially said look that's really not a solution because if congress has authorized and appropriated money -- as the chief executive and legally obliged to spend that money and if the debt ceiling isn't raised I won't have it.
So that's really not a legal answer.
Now that's where to place we've never been before I don't know that anybody actually knows the answer to the question.
Right right it's actually kind of crazy.
And in addition -- all this -- have all -- other stuff going on we have Tim -- leaving on the 25 of course there's the gun debate you know duration the first state in the union I -- It it's enough to make your head spin and yet at this to focus on as well.
Well I think this estimate -- first priority I mean if you can't if you can't fund the government if you can't basically keep the federal government running either through either because you've hit the debt ceiling or because you've run out of legal authority to spend money because the spending bill -- expired everything else kind of looks secondary by comparison so.
I think both sides agree got to deal with this first and then maybe you can move on -- guns and immigration and other issues down the line.
But first order business of the government is to fund the government itself.
You gotta do that first and that's really I think the way Washington looks for the next couple weeks.
United had a few seconds we've been hearing and -- -- reporting that they might even didn't talk about delaying Obama care to keep some money on the table actually think.
That would -- -- I -- I think that's probably not possible I think there are other things that could happen short -- that you just -- gonna get the votes in the senate to see that happen.
Yeah ads are -- thank you for being here and they're claiming at least some of it to us Wall -- downstairs that --
