WASHINGTON - U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson, Jr. informed congressional leaders today that the U.S. will reach the current statutory debt limit in early October 2007. In the attached letter, Secretary Paulson requested congressional action to raise the limit as soon as possible. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles B. Rangel (D-NY) issued the following response:
"Today’s letter comes as no surprise. At the beginning of this Congress, we recognized that the actions of prior Congresses meant that the limit would be reached sometime this year. The House has already acted to raise the debt ceiling to ensure that the United States does not default on its debt. We must enact fiscally responsible policies that move our nation forward without a further surge in our national debt."
This will be the fifth increase in the statutory debt limit under the Bush Administration. The Administration and prior Republican congresses enacted policies resulting in some of the highest fiscal deficits in American history, requiring more than a $3 Trillion increase in the debt limit since 2001.
