Schweikert Introduces Bill Addressing Spending as Default Looms

Representative David Schweikert (R-AZ) has introduced legislation requiring the Secretary of the Treasury to appear before the House Ways and Means Committee and Senate Finance Committee before the national debt limit is reached or extraordinary measures are taken to prevent defaulting.

As Reuters explained, the United States recently reached its debt ceiling limit of $36.1 trillion, prompting the Treasury Department to implement temporary "extraordinary measures" to prevent default.

The measure involved suspending investment in two government employee benefit funds through March 14th. Rep. Schweikert noted that if the debt ceiling is not raised or repealed before that date, the U.S. will default on its debts, leading to severe economic consequences.

By the numbers, that means if borrowing and spending were to continue, 9.2% of the American economy would be devoted solely to debt within nine budget years.

Hence why, Rep. Schweikert has introduced his "Debt Explanation Before Taxwriters" (DEBT) Act, which requires the Secretary of the Treasury to appear before Congress and explain the "extraordinary measures" it has taken to continue spending without raising the debt limit and how those measures will be reversed.

In his press release, the Arizona Congressman emphasized, "The Secretary of Treasury has the extraordinary responsibility of preventing the U.S. from defaulting on its more than $36 trillion national debt."

Additionally, Schweikert described how he hoped to "influence" the debt conversation: "Runaway spending and the preference of short-term bonds policies of the last four years have put the country in a precarious predicament when it comes to restoring the long-term fiscal health of our country."

As a result, "The scale of the fiscal obligations requires Congress and the Executive branch to be aligned on how to best address the greatest threat to American prosperity—the national debt. I look forward to working alongside the incoming administration to ensure the U.S. fulfills its obligations and rein in unsustainable spending," Schweikert concluded.