Debt Ceiling for Dummies: Why Compromise is So Important

With the debt ceiling crisis in the headlines for weeks (and perhaps weeks to come), the RP has written a column (cross-posted at The Huffington Post) that tries, in plain-English terms, to explain what all the fuss is about, and why it is so critical for each of us to make our voices heard to our representatives in Washington:

As we approach August 2, the deadline for Congress to lift the debt ceiling before the nation begins to default on its credit, there’s still considerable public confusion about what it all means.

While nearly every economic expert declares that default would be a disaster, and a bipartisan consensus of politicians not aligned with the Tea Party agree, the country is still sharply divided.  The most recent Pew Research Center poll found that only 40 percent of the public felt it was “essential” to raise the debt limit, while 39 percent of Americans (including 53% of Republicans) felt that we could go past the August 2 deadline without major economic problems.

Why the disconnect?

Part can be attributed to the continuing and growing distrust of Washington politicians, particularly by those disaffected on the far right.

Much is also due to the esoteric, bewildering, and sometimes coma-inducing nature of the financial jargon and labyrinthine subject matter associated with the debt ceiling debate.

As a Democrat and a former state Treasurer and CFO, I’m probably not the right guy to convince the partisan-blinder-wearing Ceiling Deniers.

But for the rest of us, I offer the following straightforward, plain-English summary to hopefully help better explain the real-life impact of American credit default:

Read the rest of the RP’s column by clicking this link.

UPDATE:  As of 9:15 AM, 07/25/11, there have already been 130 comments at The Huffington Post on this piece.  Please click here and have your say.