Raising the Debt Ceiling Will Not Improve America's Credit Rating

When Standard and Poor dropped America's rating from "stable" to "negative" the liberals saw an opportunity to push an increase in the debt ceiling using the rating as an excuse.  Erick Erickson at Red State comments:

Witness Democrat Party mouthpiece subsidized by the Washington Post Ezra Kleinspinning the S&P madly into a demand that we raise the debt ceiling and screw the cuts.

This is going to be the Democrats’ new tactic. Back in 2006, Barack Obama, in opposition to the debt ceiling increase at that time, said, “Increasing America’s debt weakens us domestically and internationally.”

Harry Reid joined him, saying, “Given the explosion of debt in recent years, it is long past time for Washington to change the course and adopt a new fiscal policy.” The Democrats have adopted a new fiscal policy and it has exploded the debt. Despite Democrat rhetoric about George W. Bush’s out of control spending, the Democrats these last two years have made George Bush’s spending spree look amateurish.

Now the Democrats want to increase the limit on the national credit card instead of paying down the bill. They want a free pass to more spending. Instead, the Republicans should accept the fact that no matter what they do they will never win over the press and should instead refuse to raise the debt ceiling without massive cuts and entitlement reforms.

The American people understand what it means to refuse to pay down credit cards and instead get new credit cards. They understand that is what government is doing. And they are tired of it.

If the Republican Party will not aggressively fight for real cuts and real reform in exchange for raising the debt ceiling, if at all, it very much will be time for a third party in this country.

That last line is a problem because a third party is never the answer. Conservative third parties don't fix Republicans, they ensure the election of Democrats. Let's get the idea of third parties out of our heads right now. Better to fix the GOP from within rather than make futile gestures with a third party that can't win anything.