Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-NY, has a column in the Hill today calling for legislation to do away with the debt ceiling because … well, because it gives conservatives too much leverage over spending. Given the fact that the Right has had virtually no leverage at all in this regard — as the continuing growth of our deficits prove — you’d think Nadler wouldn’t be troubled too much by this.
I was particularly amused by this section of his column:
There is certainly a time and a place for discussion of the proper levels of taxation and spending, and I am ready to have that discussion. But such discussions need not – must not – be tied to the routine raising of the debt ceiling to pay for debts already incurred. It’s time to repeal the debt ceiling, and I will soon re-introduce legislation to do so.
In other words, I’m all for debating this issue but let’s not give anybody the ability to actually do anything about it.