House GOP Warned on Fiscal Irresponsibility

From Politico: “House Republicans were cautioned Thursday in a closed door meeting with credit rating agency officials that a “death spiral” in the bond market was one of the possible outcomes in the event of default.

One official warned of a worst-case scenario in which a default on the nation’s credit could result in a rapid drop in bond values, sparking chaos in the markets — a dramatic warning as Washington worked on a possible deal on deficit reduction and an increase in the debt limit.”

Former Bush Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson, calling mounting debt “the single greatest threat to our nation’s future,” said Friday that the ceiling must be raised. “And the sense of urgency is clear — failing to raise the debt ceiling would do irreparable harm to our credit standing, would undermine our ability to lead on global economic issues and would damage our economy,” Paulson said in a statement after a breakfast meeting with Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0711/59655.html#ixzz1SqaPWTwF

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0711/59612.html#ixzz1SqLw5CgR