Debt Default Crisis Looms

The title of this chapter may seem to be rather strange, but I have deliberately chosen it, as it correctly expresses the concern of numerous journalists. Many of them are well respected, considered to be among the finest in their profession, even though ‘’Left Leaning’’. Their presentations, concerning the ‘’debt crisis’’, accurately states the facts. At the same time, their analysis is frequently in direct contradiction to those facts! 

Yet this is characteristic, of the rather strange behaviour of middle class journalists. As Lenin pointed out, middle class people, those whom are technically referred to as ‘’petty bourgeois’’, are members of the most patriotic class. Their position in society leads to this patrIotism! It is clearly painful for them, to even consider the possibility that their elected leaders, in Washington, would deliberately allow the country to default! They consider this to be nothing less than an act of treason! 

For the sake of those who are not familiar with American politics, perhaps a little background is in order. 

In American bourgeois politics, there are basically two political parties, Democrats and Republicans. The president, Joe Biden, is currently a Democrat, and the Democrats control the 100 member Senate, by the slimmest of margins. 

On the other hand, the Republicans control the 435 Member House of Representatives, also by a razor thin margin, of 221-211.

This is significant, as the Republican Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy, can afford to ‘’lose’’ only four votes, in order to get a bill passed, by the House. 

Yet the American government is close to ‘’default’’, which is to say that they have no money to pay their bills. They have reached their ‘’debt ceiling’’. They cannot go any deeper into debt, without the approval of the House, as by law, the House controls the money.

In fact, the government ‘’reached the debt ceiling in January’’, according to the economists, and has since ‘’resorted to extraordinary measures’’, other wise known as ‘’creative book keeping’’, in order to pay the bills. Such book keeping is commonly referred to as fraud.

Still, the economists are pointing out that the default cannot be avoided, and may happen as soon as early June. Unless, of course, the government is allowed to ‘’increase the debt ceiling’’, so that they will be allowed to borrow more money. As the House controls the money, it is up to the House to act. Or not!

So now it is up to the Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy, to gather enough votes, within his own Party, to raise the debt ceiling. Otherwise, he will be blamed for the American default.

With possibly a mere five weeks remaining, before the country is unable to pay its bills, it is up to Kevin McCarthy, as Speaker of the House, to come up with a bill to increase that debt ceiling. In fact, he made a supreme effort, and did just that, on April 26. 

That bill is widely seen to be DOA, Dead On Arrival. It has absolutely no chance of being signed into law. Both the Senate and President Biden have vowed to kill the bill.

Some of the finest of the bourgeois journalists, who make a career of covering Washington politics, are reporting that the Republican Members of Congress are deeply divided.

In particular, they have identified no less than eight Members of Congress, whom they refer to as the ‘’Five Families’’. This is their less than subtle way of comparing them to the Mobsters, of New York City. 

Be that as it may, it is clear that the journalists have a very low opinion of those Members. They think that those particular Members are placing their own personal concerns above the interests of the country. 

In this, the journalists are absolutely correct!   

For some time, there was speculation that the Republican House Members could not possibly agree to any bill, which involved raising the debt ceiling. Yet over a period of several days, and in the process of ‘’tense negotiations’’, McCarthy managed to get together just enough votes, to get such a bill passed. 

The critics point out that in order to get that support, McCarthy had to make numerous concessions. Up until the moment the bill was sent to the ‘’House Floor’’, to be voted on, changes were being made. 

These changes are significant, as the ‘’spending bill’’, that which ‘’raises the debt ceiling’’, is tied in with that which is  referred to as ‘’dramatic cuts to the social safety net and its safety infrastructure’’.

That is putting it politely! 

In terms of the ‘’social safety net’’, it will ‘’end critical food assistance’’, so that the hungry will not receive food stamps. Also, there will be dramatic cuts to Medicaid, with so many people being deprived of medical coverage. Others will have to pay a great deal more. There will be no housing assistance, for those who need it most. The number of homeless people is expected to sky rocket. The promise of President Biden, to forgive student loans, will be cancelled. Those with student loans will be forced to continue making payments. There will be cuts to early childhood education, as well as cuts to Veterans Affairs. There will be no support for that which is referred to as ‘’Green Energy’’. There will be far fewer people in the IRS. In fact, it is anticipated that ‘’countless people will lose their jobs’’, and not just in the IRS! 

As concerns the ‘’safety infrastructure’’, there will be far fewer rail safety inspections, as well as fewer air traffic controllers. Both air and rail travel are about to become far more dangerous! 

Certain journalists are referring to this as a ‘’symbolic victory for McCarthy’’. They are of the opinion that it will ‘’give him leverage, in order to negotiate with Biden’’. Nonsense! Such is hardly the case! Negotiation is out of the question! The two are deadlocked!

McCarthy was forced to include all of those demands, in order to secure sufficient votes to get the bill through the House. If he ‘’negotiates away’’ even one demand, then the Member who insisted on that demand, will change his vote, and then the revised bill will not pass the House!

On the other hand, Biden can not possibly agree to any of those demands, because it would cost him the next presidential election! Not that the bill will ever get to his desk, because it first has to be passed by the Senate! Not about to happen! Especially as the Democrats are just as deeply divided as the Republicans!

One journalist, in particular, described this in rather dramatic terms. She is of the opinion that the Republican Members of Congress, are using the ‘’threat’’ of ‘’driving the country into default’’, for their own purposes, that they are ‘’holding the American economy hostage’’. As she stated, now that McCarthy has finally brought the bill to the floor of the House, the ‘’ransom demands’’ have finally been announced: Massive cuts to social and safety programs!

In support of this bill, a great many of the more ‘’Right wing’’ economists are predicting that the ‘’debt ceiling can be breached with only minimal impact.’’

In fact, that ‘’minimal impact’’ would include a dramatic increase to the suffering of the ‘’common people’’, the working class, the proletariat! Yet that is of no concern to the monopoly capitalists, the billionaires, the bourgeoisie! 

In all fairness, we have to admit that they have a point! It all depends upon your class outlook! The members of the capitalist class, the billionaires, care not in the slightest, about the members of the working class!

Naturally, the opinion of the more honest, ‘’Left leaning’’ economists, which is to the effect that ‘’breaching the national debt’’, could well lead to ‘’economic disaster’’, is largely ignored. 

In fact, it is fast approaching! Neither Biden nor McCarthy is in any position to negotiate!

This is to stress the fact that the ruling class, in this case the monopoly capitalists, the billionaires, the bourgeoisie, have come to a state of crisis. They ‘’can no longer rule in the old way’’. It is also a fact that the ‘’lower classes’’, in this case the working class, and the -soon to be ruined!- middle class, are supremely well aware that they can ‘’no longer live in the old way’’. This is the very definition of a ‘’Revolutionary situation’’, as per Lenin, in Left Wing Communism, An Infantile Disorder. 

Yet that in no way changes the fact that the working class, the proletariat, is still not aware of itself as a class, with its own class interests. It is still less aware of the Revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin. Through no fault of its own, I might add. After all, those Revolutionary theories are only mentioned in university. 

My point is that the creation of a true Communist Party, one which calls for the Dictatorship of the Proletariat, is urgent. Only such a Communist Party can provide the proletariat with the awareness, the direction, which it so desperately needs.

For now, as always, the working class is struggling. Yet this struggle is not focused! How can it be focused? They are not aware that the capitalists are the enemy! They are not aware that the state apparatus must be smashed, and replaced, with the Dictatorship of the Proletariat! They are not aware of the need for Revolution!

In a previous article, I compared this class struggle to two boxers, one of whom is blindfolded. Of course the capitalists are supremely class conscious, focused on squeezing as much money from the working class as possible. By contrast, the working class is not aware of itself as a class, that the capitalists are the class enemy. For that reason, the working class can be compared to the boxer who is blind folded, swinging wildly, striking out in all directions. For that reason, I say: remove the blind fold! Raise the level of awareness of the working class! Allow the working class to focus their anger, to strike out at their class enemies, the capitalists!

Of course that comparison is an over simplification. Yet it serves to make the point. It is absolutely necessary that the working class become aware of themselves as a class, aware of the Revolutionary theories of Marx and Lenin, aware of the necessity of smashing the existing state apparatus, aware of the necessity of replacing it with the Dictatorship of the Proletariat. Then, and only then, can the Socialist Revolution be successful. 

With that in mind, we can only hope that those who are taking part in this Revolutionary Movement, will take advantage of the internet, and either download or buy the Revolutionary works of Marx and Lenin. As I have covered this in a previous article, there is no need to repeat it here.

Then perhaps a few working class intellectuals, can take part in the creation of a true Communist Party. It is very likely that a number of  middle class intellectuals will join in. As their world comes ‘’crashing down’’, as ever more middle class people become impoverished, the smarter ones will realize that they have ‘’no future’’ under capitalism. 

The Revolution is bound to happen, and soon. At that point, one of two things will happen. Either the state apparatus is smashed, and replaced with the Dictatorship of the Proletariat, and we will embrace Socialism. Or a different group of people  will take over the current state apparatus, and set themselves up as the new rulers. More capitalism!

That choice is in the hands of the Revolutionaries.

But now to return to the current situation. 

It is significant that the journalists are focused on the ‘’political infighting’’ which is taking place in Washington, mainly within the two parties. There is a reason for this!

As Lenin pointed out, in State and Revolution, ‘’Take any parliamentary country, from America to Switzerland, from France to Norway and so forth -in these countries the actual work of the ‘state’ is done behind the scenes and is carried on by the departments, the government offices and the General Staffs. Parliament itself is given up to talk for the general purpose of fooling the ‘common people’’’. 

While the journalists are focused on the politicians, who are making speeches, the actual ‘’work of state’’ is being done ‘’behind the scenes’’. These speeches are nothing more than a ‘’smoke screen’’, a ‘’diversion’’, a ‘’decoy’’, a ‘’red herring’’, to put it in popular terms. 

The journalists have ‘’taken the bait’’, are focused on the speeches of the politicians, are speculating on the possibility  of the unthinkable, a government default…while the people in charge, working ‘’behind the scenes’’, have already decided on that default!

The fact of the matter is that ‘’someone’’, who is working ‘’behind the scenes’’, has been very busy, ‘’pulling the strings’’ of various politicians. These politicians are mere ‘’puppets’’, who ‘’dance to his tune’’. He writes the speeches, and the politicians recite them!

That certain ‘’someone’’, is very likely the individual who is focused on becoming president, once again. Whatever the expense! If that means sending the country into default, then so be it! He can then come to the rescue, like a knight in shining armour, riding on a white horse!

It has, very likely, already been decided, that the country will go into default, and that will result in ‘’widespread economic devastation’’. President Biden will then get the blame, and theRepublican presidential nominee, Donald Trump, will easily win the next presidential election. Or so they think! That is their plan!

The journalists, in turn, are also ‘’dancing to his tune’’, whether they know it or not. They are dutifully reporting on the speeches of the politicians. In this way, they too, are doing their part in ‘’fooling the common people’’. 

Yet it is clear that the crisis in capitalism is coming to a conclusion. Marx and Engels had a few words to say on the subject, in the Communist Manifesto: ‘’In times when the class struggle nears the decisive hour, the process of dissolution going on within the ruling class, in fact within the whole range of old society, assumes such a violent, glaring character, that a small section of the ruling class cuts itself adrift, and joins the Revolutionary class, the class that holds the future in its hands. Just as, therefore, at an earlier period, a section of the nobility went over to the bourgeoisie, so now a portion of the bourgeoisie goes over to the proletariat, and in particular, a portion of the bourgeois ideologists, who have raised themselves to the level of comprehending theoretically the historical movement as a whole.’’

No doubt those ‘’bourgeois ideologist’’ will be a most valuable addition to the Revolutionary Movement, especially those who are theoreticians. Equally without doubt, they will assist the working class intellectuals in creating that which is so urgently needed, an American Communist Party, Dictatorship of the Proletariat. ACP, DP.