Report: House GOP leaders consider four-year debt limit deal
With the administration’s debt ceiling deadline fast approaching, House Republican leaders are considering a four-year debt limit increase that would take the issue off the table for the rest of President Barack Obama’s presidency.
The plan would, however, come at no easy price for Obama, who pledged as recently as Monday morning not to negotiate with Republicans on a debt ceiling hike. Republicans would demand major tax and entitlement changes — the latter of which has been anathema to many Democrats — and they could also ask for movement on the sequester and an expiring continuing resolution that must be dealt with in the next three months…
“We have an opportunity to inject years of certainty while doing some fundamental tax reform and entitlement reform,” said Rep. Steve Southerland II of Florida, the sophomore class leadership representative, who was at the meeting.
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The Dealz Clause, my favorite part of the Constitution.
forest on January 15, 2013 at 11:50 AM
Forget it. Do the debt limit fight month by month.
astonerii on January 15, 2013 at 11:52 AM
Alternate headline: House GOP leaders consider wearing ball gags that say “I (heart) 0bama” for next four years.
CurtZHP on January 15, 2013 at 11:54 AM
They don’t want to deal with the debt problem?
Cut the freaking spending.
trigon on January 15, 2013 at 11:56 AM
These people are cowards and idiots and this will not end well.
trigon on January 15, 2013 at 11:57 AM
With less than a dozen exceptions the GOP should just come to work dressed up like female dogs, because they’re all Obamas b!tches.
MelonCollie on January 15, 2013 at 11:59 AM
Let the Republican Cave Proceedings begin……
dddave on January 15, 2013 at 12:02 PM
*sigh*
ellifint on January 15, 2013 at 12:05 PM
You got to be effing kidding me.
Paul-Cincy on January 15, 2013 at 12:08 PM
Oh puh-leaze. Everyone knows that infinite spending is “inevitable” and we need to “deal with reality.” Only right wing extremist ideologues want to cut spending. What’s your plan, wingnutz? /
Doomberg on January 15, 2013 at 12:09 PM
… thereby guaranteeing that the conservative wing will be less likely to turn out and vote GOP. Which should be almost impossible but these jerks could snatch defeat from any jaws of victory.
platypus on January 15, 2013 at 12:10 PM
Yeah, we all know where this is headed.
gwelf on January 15, 2013 at 12:15 PM
so what are we talkin about here……
22 TRILLION BY 2016
Judgement Day is coming
lm10001 on January 15, 2013 at 12:16 PM
…suckers.
equanimous on January 15, 2013 at 12:17 PM
The GOP is engaged in an ongoing and active effort to completely purge the conservative wing. The idea seems to be that they can replace the base with Hispanics. Of course, these are the same whiz kids who thought they didn’t need the conservative base in 2012.
The GOP has become the Whig Party.
Doomberg on January 15, 2013 at 12:19 PM
Prediction: Headline article one year from now…
Flange on January 15, 2013 at 12:30 PM
Call this know nothing commie fools bluff.
He thinks we the people will not fight for our Constitution and freedom.
He wants a fight, give him one.
Mark Levin has a poll up:
“Is Pres. Obama a imperial Pres.”
As of 12:00 Eastern
98% Yes
2% No.
Mark says that if Obama attempts to do the debt celling via Executive Orders then he must be impeached.
Stand our gound, if he wants a fight give it to him loud and clear.
APACHEWHOKNOWS on January 15, 2013 at 12:34 PM
Struggling twice a year to reduce planned increases in spending is a tough job! Better cut that workload in half (only at spending authorization time now), say it’s out of their control now and enjoy the elite Georgetown lifestyle along with the perks of Congress and Senate.
This is why the last election is the last time I will ever vote Republican!
elfman on January 15, 2013 at 12:42 PM
This is actually a great idea for once. If we restructure entitlements properly (and I have doubts the GOP can actually do this), then we might not even hit that debt ceiling.
Ca97 on January 15, 2013 at 12:51 PM
No, it is a bad idea.
Here is how the public ends up reading this in the news.
Republicans offer to increase debt limit for 4 years. End story 1.
Republicans plan to throw grandma over the cliff. End Story 2.
Here is how the Republicans end the standoff.
Republicans raise the debt limit for 4 years.
Republicans put off throwing grandma over the cliff.
This is how the nation ends.
Republicans no longer the party of responsibility, but the party of enabling.
astonerii on January 15, 2013 at 1:18 PM
Being that entitlements are 62 percent of spending, and borrowing is 40 percent of spending, you’d need to cut entitlements 66% to keep from hitting the debt ceiling. Good luck with that.
Just pass dept a freak’n debt ceiling extension that reauthorizes spending immediately at exactly 1 percent less than is currently authorized. Let the left try to sell America on the idea that this is too “extreme”.
elfman on January 15, 2013 at 1:32 PM
Why only a four-year deal? Why not eight years? Or sixteen? If you’re going to kick the can down the road, why not go for a field goal?
RoadRunner on January 15, 2013 at 2:03 PM
I agree with your intent. It’s stupid to throw away an opportunity to accentuate the irresponsible spending of the President by eliminating the GOP’s ability to use it for 4 years.
Monthly is good, though I’d prefer weekly. And each bill to raise the debt ceiling should have some provision to eliminate some small program, law, regulation or particular funding and send it on to the Senate and let Reid be responsible for shutting down the government by not acting on it.
Dusty on January 15, 2013 at 3:03 PM