Storm Goodman

Before World War I, the U.S. Congress would individually pass each case in which the government issued debt. In 1917, the debt ceiling was created, giving the government a limit on how much debt it was allowed to accumulate. Congress has voted to raise this ceiling 78 times since 1960, each time being when it was practically reached. 

In June of this year, President Joe Biden passed the debt ceiling deal which suspends the ceiling until the first quarter of 2025. Neglecting to face this problem head-on, we need to entirely abolish the debt ceiling. 

We nearly experienced a government shutdown in May because the House could not agree on how to change the debt ceiling. As stated in US News, the House Republicans voted to pass a bill to raise the ceiling but make budget cuts in welfare payments such as social security, while the House Democrats wanted to raise the limit unconditionally. 

If we reach the ceiling and can no longer pay our debts, we will have to default on our debts, putting our economic credibility at stake. According to the White House, this means the value of the dollar would take a nosedive, stocks would fall and the federal government would struggle to provide payments to the citizens who require it. Overall, the standard of living would plummet. 

Dissolving the debt ceiling takes the U.S. out of risk for constant government shutdowns and eliminates certain future conflicts between parties. To keep its debt under control, rather than making budget cuts to decrease welfare spending, the government needs to focus on reforming its progressive tax. With this reform, Congress will have an influx of money that can be used to both keep debts restrained and continue giving welfare benefits. Raising the debt limit only increases taxes on the working class because of how the government taxes its citizens and how the rich accumulate their wealth. Tax reform is crucial, along with ending the debt ceiling for the sake of working-class America — the people this country relies on. 

The aftermath of reaching the debt limit is so much more gruesome than getting rid of it. As a country, we fear this limit and what will happen if we surpass it, but we cannot seem to get on the same page for what to do as we come close to it. Abolishing the debt ceiling is easily one of the most simple solutions as we approach future economic crises.