The deficit – “How will we pay for it?” is the wrong question and a “kitchen table budget” is the wrong analogy.

House Republicans are refusing a clean debt limit increase, regardless of the consequences of the U.S. defaulting on its debt. In fact, their new rules package deliberately removed a rule that automatically increased the debt limit to pay what we already owe. They also made rules to protect their rich and corporate donors from paying their fair share in taxes.

Biden, in his State of the Union address, tricked them into backing off of Social Security and Medicare for the moment, but they will demand the sacrifice of other vital programs with their pledge to cut appropriations to 2022 levels. This equals a possible 24% cut to non-defense programs, including “a wide array of public services that the federal government provides and that people and communities depend on, including public health; food safety inspections; air traffic control operations; the administration of Medicare and Social Security; housing and other assistance for families with low incomes; education and job training; and scientific and medical research, to name just a few.”

Ignore any GOP (or Sen. Manchin’s) “kitchen table” comparisons between a nation’s deficit and that of a family’s budget, unless you know someone down the block who mints their own money. Whatever homespun euphemisms they use to hide their historical hatred of anything beyond rapacious capitalism, know that research proves that their proposed solution – austerity measures – are proven dangers to economic recovery.

Action #1: Contact your legislators!

Minimal script to your LEGISLATORS: I’m calling from [zip code) and even though Biden tricked the GOP out of using Social Security or Medicare as hostages in the debt ceiling battle, I want [Representative/Senator] [___] to support H.R.415 – End the Threat of Default Act while standing strong against ANY economic austerity cuts the GOP plans to levee that will disproportionately affect the poor and middle classes. If the GOP wants to do something useful to lower the deficit in the future, ask them to revoke the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, Trump’s scam which will continue to starve our treasury of trillions through 2029. And stop make it worse with bills to cut IRS funding, which would add $114 billion to the deficit.

COSPONSORS for H.R. 415: Rep. Julia Brownley has signed on, Salud Carbajal isn’t a cosponsor yet.

Action #2: Write a letter to your local paper.

Indivisible, the national headquarters of our progressive grassroots organization, created a Letter to the Editor tool to help us spread awareness about this issue and hold our representatives accountable. 

For those of us who have Democratic representatives in the House, we can use this template, then customize and personalize it.

For those of us with Republican representatives, let’s use this template.

Action #3: Write to Joe

Dear Joe,

Great SOTU speech, BTW! You boxed in the GOP on Social Security and Medicare on national TV! That was wicked!

Now comes the hard part, keeping them from slicing up other programs important to us non-one-percenters, like public health; food safety inspections; air traffic control operations; the administration of Medicare and Social Security; housing and other assistance for families with low incomes; education and job training; and scientific and medical research, amongst other things.

Don’t negotiate with them! The House has just put out the H.R.415 – End the Threat of Default Act, which won’t pass without making GOP members nervous enough to cross the aisle. Meanwhile, sit down with your team and the best constitutional lawyers we have and work out how to stop this brand of economic terrorism for good. Use a magic trillion dollar coin, bonds, the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974. or whatever will make this issue moot forever more.

Seriously, is this whole debt ceiling scam unconstitutional as hell? “Section 4 – Public Debt” of the 14th Amendment states: “The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law…shall not be questioned.” The GOP won’t want you to start here, as it goes on to state: “…neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States…” Hey, maybe we might be saving on salary checks for a couple of legislators!)

Stick the landing on this, Joe! NO compromises with economic terrorists.

Deeper Dive and more fun videos!

UPDATE: The Whitehouse just showed us the receipts on the GOP’s recent record on Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid.

This 7 years old, but the basic fact remain, because the GOP remains the economic terrorists and oligarch lackeys they’ve always been.