Chuck Schumer calls Republicans stupid for blocking a suspension of the debt ceiling and tells them to ‘get out of the way’
- Schumer took to the Senate floor to bash GOP efforts to block a move to hike the nation’s debt ceiling
- He blamed ‘pure stupidity’ and ‘Republican stupidity’
- Republicans blocked his effort to get unanimous consent to suspend debt ceiling
- Country faces potential default Oct. 18 when ‘extraordinary measures’ run out
- Senate wants Democrats to raise it on their own through big reconciliation bill
Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer took to the Senate floor Wednesday to accuse Republicans of ‘pure stupidity’ for failing allow Democrats to move legislation to hike the debt ceiling to prevent a default.
Schumer spoke a day after his counterpart Mitch McConnell objected when he sought unanimous consent for a move to suspend the debt ceiling by a simple majority, relying on Democratic votes.
He said he paraphrased economist Austan Goolsbee, a top economic advisor to former President Barack Obama who met with Democrats Wednesday.
‘Throughout history there have certainly been governments that have defaulted on their debt, but never has there been a default caused by pure stupidity,’ Schumer said. ‘In this case, Republican stupidity,’ he added.
Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer ripped Republicans for blocking efforts to raise the nation’s borrowing limit, with a potential default coming in mid-October if Congress does not act
He spoke hours after the failure of his latest effort, with Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warning ‘extraordinary measures’ by the government to meet its obligations will run out by October 18th.
McConnell has repeatedly said Republicans will not furnish votes to raise the debt limit, and is trying to force Democrats to attach an increase to their budget reconciliation bill – a measure that is now snarled in weedy negotiations.
‘There is no chance, no chance the Republican conference will go out of our way to help Democrats conserve their time and energy, so they can resume ramming through partisan socialism as fast as possible,’ McConnell said Tuesday.
‘Of course the debt ceiling has to be raised. They have a way to do it,’ said McConnell.
‘Rare to have such pointed language on the Senate floor – especially from a member of the leadership,’ tweeted experienced Congress-watcher Chad Pergram of Fox News.
Schumer is ruling out McConnell’s proposal that Democrats act alone through the big bill they are assembling.
‘Now in solving this crisis, this body cannot and will not go through a drawn-out unpredictable process sought by the minority leader … To do this through reconciliation requires ping-ponging separate bills back from the Senate and the House,’ Schumer said,’ calling it ‘uncharted waters.’
Doing so would also require Democrats to legislate a dollar amount for the statutory debt hike – potentially contributing to any political liability.
Schumer in a Senate floor speech blamed ‘Republican stupidity’ for a potential default
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell says Democrats should have to vote to raise the debt ceiling on their own through budget reconciliation, and has blasted Democrats for acting unilaterally on their spending plans
Schumer said he was paraphrasing economist Austan Goolsbee
The debt ceiling impasse comes amid a potential government shutdown, with two major pieces of President Biden’s economic agenda under threat
Schumer said Democrats have ‘tried to find a workable solution to avoid default on our sovereign debt, but the Republicans have stymied us at every opportunity.’
The GOP also blocked a debt limit hike that Democrats attached to a temporary bill to keep the government running, plus ’emergency’ hurricane spending and funds to resettle Afghans. It would suspend the debt ceiling through 2022.
As Schumer described it: ‘Republicans unanimously voted in favor of default.’
Other powerful figures have called out a potential fault in less colorful terms. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says it would be a ‘self-inflicted wound.’
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