Congress’ perpetual debt ceiling debate: The latest example of DC’s growing dysfunction

Early in the morning on December 15, 2021, Congress passed a $2.5 trillion debt ceiling hike. The debt ceiling is the government’s borrowing limit to pay its bills for past spending. For the past few months, the US Treasury has warned lawmakers the US had until the 15^th to raise the debt limit or risk defaulting on its obligations. The $2.5 trillion increase means politicians in Washington won’t have to address the issue again until 2023.

After the vote, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer noted: “No brinkmanship, no default on the debt, no risk of another recession: responsible governing has won on this exceedingly important issue. The American people can breathe easy and rest assured there will not be a default.”

While it is important and necessary that lawmakers ensure the government has enough funds to operate, it’s worth noting that this recurring showdown in Washington is a prime example of our capitol city’s growing dysfunction.

The debt ceiling charade is a perpetual problem that Congress repeatedly fails to address. Rather than confront what’s driving the issue—unsustainable government spending—Congress keeps raising the limit and kicking the can down the road. What’s more, both parties use the debt ceiling as a game of chicken—or trying to pursue political ends by threatening inaction on the debt limit. This debacle illustrates DC’s inability to govern and disregard for the will of ordinary Americans.

It’s a theme State Policy Network’s Tony Woodlief touches on in his new book I, Citizen. The values and interests of politicians in Washington are at odds with those of regular Americans. There’s a huge gap between what political elites running DC believe about the common good and what everyday Americans believe.

Woodlief added:

“The problem with Congress raising the debt ceiling is that our country has little to show for all the debt they’ve already taken on. Whether its COVID relief funds that disproportionately favored the well-connected while enriching large national banks, tax cuts that did little to stimulate job growth and small business expansion, or federal aid to states and communities that forbids them to give their citizens tax cuts, the two major parties controlling our federal government haven’t invested all this debt they’ve taken on in our name, they’ve squandered it pursuing political advantage.

Americans don’t want more handouts, and they certainly don’t want more directives from DC telling them how to run their communities. What they want is for DC politicians to stop lying that benefits have no costs, to stop putting partisan advantage over wise governance, and to stop mortgaging our children’s future.”

Learn more about Woodlief’s new book here.

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