Bill Clinton: Life Would Go On If We Defaulted

[AgeOfEnlightenmentSCP]

...for a few days. It would get bad if we permanently refused to pay, but a temporary default or late payment on our national debt wouldn't be that big a deal.

Though many in his party have been furiously warning about the dire consequences of failing to raise the debt ceiling, former President Bill Clinton isn’t so sure.

“If we defaulted on the debt once for a few days, it might not be calamitous,” Clinton said Wednesday at the Peter Peterson Foundation Fiscal Summit in Washington. The global markets, he said, would likely still have faith that the United States would be able to pay its bills. The calamity would come only “if people thought we weren’t going to pay our bills anymore and … they would stop buying our debt.”

Read more: www.politico.com/news/stories/0511/55678.html#ixzz1NfoMMW9C

And then, in one of the more amusing attempts at political spin, Bill Clinton's spokesman attempted to walk it back:

In a statement later Wednesday, Clinton spokesman Matt McKenna said the former president did not intend to suggest that his view on raising the debt ceiling ran contrary to his fellow Democrats’. “We regret if there has been a misinterpretation of a comment President Clinton made about raising the debt limit,” McKenna said. “President Clinton did not in any way mean to suggest that a default would not be highly damaging for the economy even for a very short period of time. He inadvertently misspoke.”

And then cofirmed exactly what Clinton originally said:

“What he meant to say was that if a vote to extend the debt limit failed in advance of a default, that might not be harmful for a couple of days, but that if people thought that we might actually default, that in his words ‘we were literally not going to pay our bills anymore, then they would stop buying our debt,” McKenna said.

[deziloooooo]

a few days ...probably correct .

However, for anyone knowing the markets, banks , financials, those who move things and manipulate, I will, and not being as knowledgeable as Bill or anywhere near as competent in such dealings , but will suggest , IMHO, it would give those who love manipulating things and making quick profits on any bad news, short selling, financial institutions , and so many other dealings I have no clue about, immediately jumping on the news and raising interest rates, foreign borrowers immediately demanding higher interest rates and more favorable rates, and other such what evers.

Even if all knew it was basically a 99% action of a political back and forth, "of course they will honor their debts but if they want to play politics with it, we'll be glad to take advantage of their stupidity for as long as we can" .

That is my feelings granted not being a expert in any of these things and it would help those of us who are just standing on the side lines looking in confusion at each other asking, "wha hoppebned, what does it mean...is the sky falling or not, MOMMY, help me "

[deziloooooo]

Of course it will, but why make things more difficult?

If only the levees on the Misissippi were only eight feet higher, longer, the tornadoes picked the open fields, the misery would have been not there. Flood waters would have moved on through, the trees and isolated building hit replaced.

Life still moing on but much more normal then that which is now faced.

[Deleted]

Yes, a few days delay wouldn't "kill" us. The problem is that even a few days delay might (& probably would) make us pay more interest on borrowing money. Stop looking large a minute & think about Mr average American & what that does to him (if he is late on payments). While they might not be able to jack up our interest rate, it would certainly cause us to borrow at much higher interest rates. That means paying a lot more over a longer period of time. Now adjust that back up to government borrowing & the fact that they are borrowing 40% of everything we spend & it doesn't take even a half smart person to see that will be a horrible weight around our necks in the future even if we do cut spending.

When your in a lot of debt the FIRST thing you do is to stop spending. If you don't do that then NOTHING helps.

[deziloooooo]

"When your in a lot of debt the FIRST thing you do is to stop spending. If you don't do that then NOTHING helps"

You got that right , but in the reality of the world..S happens, both in the small, people, Car stops working, kid, you, Spouse gets sick, dog becomes ill.

In the big picture, Katrina happens, Lybia happens, the Mississippi decides this year would be a good year for the 100 year high on water down the stream, Tornadoes decide, "tired of missing everyone, the open fields and scaring the bejevers out of everyone" "we lucked out this time", going for the jugular, no more {phews}, Hurricanes decide, hey lets go hit Florida, six times this year, every two weeks like clock work, such fun, the earhquake decides , been a while since we visited Mom in San Fran, "Hi Mom, were baaaacckk}..s happens, and sorry to say , it can be a real big one.

All that you saved, wiped out with just one of those above...and nothing you can do about it.

[marshabar1]

Default is not allowed by the cartel. They will restructure the debt, they will make new loans to fund the payment of continued interest payments, they will take property, they will insist on austerity measures to squeeze the population for more payment. Default? Never. Not until they kill us all.

[Deleted]

Don't kid yourselves, default of a few days would be seen as testing the waters to see what happens if you don't pay at all. And you guys defaulting on your debt...ya, you will need to stay at war alert for a very long time.