[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 12]
[House]
[Page 16551]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              DEBT CEILING

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Quigley) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. QUIGLEY. Mr. Speaker, in 1983, President Ronald Reagan wrote to 
then-Senate Majority Leader Howard Baker, urging him to raise the debt 
ceiling. In his letter, he said: ``The risks, the costs, the 
disruptions, and the incalculable damage lead me to but one conclusion: 
The Senate must pass this legislation before the Congress adjourns.''
  Twenty-three years later, we now find ourselves 1 week away from 
defaulting on our debt for the first time in our Nation's history. 
Instead of making sure we preserve the full faith and credit of the 
United States, as President Reagan had done 18 times during his tenure, 
some want to hold our economy hostage to extract ideological wins.
  This is not the time for partisan bickering and political 
gamesmanship, not when it means delaying Social Security benefits for 
seniors and those with disabilities, withholding paychecks from our 
brave Active Duty servicemembers, and postponing interest payments on 
government-issued bonds.
  We have a responsibility to live up to our obligations no matter 
what. That is not politics; it is basic governing.
  The longer we wait to meet our obligations and raise the debt 
ceiling, the closer we get to another credit rating downgrade, a spike 
in interest rates, and a severe slowdown in economic growth. This is 
not an overstatement.
  Let's look back at what happened in 2013 during the last debt ceiling 
standoff. Just the possibility of default caused rates on Treasuries to 
rise by almost half a percentage point. That cost taxpayers as much as 
$70 million.
  This time around, if we actually default, market forecasters estimate 
that interest payments on Treasuries would increase Federal deficits by 
$10 billion over the short term and by $70 billion a year after that. 
That is money that wouldn't be going to critical investments in 
research and development, education, and infrastructure.
  On top of that, higher interest rates on Treasuries could lead to a 1 
percent reduction in GDP. That would mean the loss of almost 700,000 
jobs, and that is just a conservative estimate.
  Make no mistake, every American would be impacted. Middle class 
families looking to buy a home would face higher mortgage rates. A half 
a percentage point increase in mortgage rates would increase the 
lifetime cost of an average home loan by almost $19,000. Small-business 
owners would face difficulties trying to secure new loans as lending 
tightens up. And students will have an even harder time trying to pay 
for college as student loan rates skyrocket.
  We owe it to our constituents to move toward responsible governing 
and away from governing by crisis, which has become all too common 
around here.
  The bipartisan budget package unveiled last night affirms the full 
faith and credit of the United States and represents real progress for 
hardworking American families who are tired of threats of default and 
partisan gridlock.
  Now is not the time for politics. Now is the time for thoughtful 
consideration, bipartisan compromise, and, most importantly, finding a 
path forward for the American people.

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