Keep shutdowns, debt ceiling in context

Your recent editorial makes an important point about the dysfunction surrounding the federal debt ceiling. But in doing so, it blends two very different mechanisms: the debt ceiling and government shutdowns.

A shutdown occurs when Congress fails to pass appropriations bills or a continuing resolution. The debt ceiling, by contrast, limits the Treasury’s ability to borrow to pay obligations Congress has already approved. One threatens a lapse in government operations; the other threatens a default on U.S. debt. They are separate laws with separate triggers and separate consequences.

The 1995 shutdowns, for example, were caused by a lapse in appropriations — not by the debt ceiling. The political fights overlapped, but the legal mechanisms were distinct.

We absolutely should debate whether the debt ceiling is a useful tool or an unnecessary hazard. But we should do so with precision. Shutdowns are a failure to fund government. Debt‑ceiling crises are a failure to authorize borrowing. Both are harmful, but they are not the same.

Rich Garling

Grayslake