President Bush Defies Constitution: Questions Federal Debt!

A photo of President Bush from Reuters.

When will this President ever learn? When will America wake up? When will new leadership be found to lead this country that respects the good faith and credit of the United States Government.

First in 2003, we had Secretary Snow talking down the dollar. This has not solved the problem of balance of trade. It made it worse. It did not attract tourists to America. But it did make our travel to foreign countries more expensive and contributed to the soaring price of oil. It most likely has contributed to the inflationary pressures affecting our nation right now and has forced the Fed's hand in raising interest rates. Who wants to hold our bonds when the dollar is sliding in value?

So now, once again, we have the President questioning the Federal Debt. Not just the President of some third world nation. But the President of our own United States of America.

Maybe he didn't study the Constitution in his stay at Yale. Section 4 of the 14th Amendment of the United States Constitution states:

Section. 4. The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave; but all such debts, obligations and claims shall be held illegal and void.

That's right, let me repeat, "The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned." This was written after the Civil War. But it did NOT limit prohibitions JUST for insurrection. It said INCLUDING DEBTS... You get my point?

So what did President George W. Bush say today??? Talking about the Social Security Trust fund he managed to question the federal debt once again.

Try this:

"A lot of people in America think there's a trust," Bush told a forum here, shortly after he stopped off at the Bureau of Public Debt, the agency that keeps records on the nation's debt.


"But that's not the way it works," he said. "There is no trust fund -- just IOUs."

O.K., I am just a blogger. What could I know about these big issues. Well, let's see what OUR OWN FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS TO SAY....So looking at the Social Security Administration website, I found this:

As stated in the answer to "What happens to the taxes that go into the trust funds?", most of the money flowing into the trust funds is invested in U. S. Government securities. Because the government spends this borrowed cash, some people see the current increase in the trust fund assets as an accumulation of securities that the government will be unable to make good on in the future. Without legislation to restore long-range solvency of the trust funds, redemption of long-term securities prior to maturity would be necessary.

Far from being "worthless IOUs," the investments held by the trust funds are backed by the full faith and credit of the U. S. Government. The government has always repaid Social Security, with interest. The special-issue securities are, therefore, just as safe as U.S. Savings Bonds or other financial instruments of the Federal government.

I am so tired of phony patriots who tear down this country to advance their own agenda. I believe in America. I love America. I trust Savings Bonds, Federal Treasury Notes, Treasury Bills and I believe in the full faith and credit of the United States Government.

Isn't it time we had a President who understood this as well?

Bob