What happens if the debt ceiling is not raised by October
Absent action on the debt ceiling, the Bipartisan Policy Center calculates that the Treasury would fall short by $80 billion sometime in October, meaning it couldn’t pay all of its bills for that month.
When the Treasury falls short, it will be impossible to pay, on a day-to-day basis, for important and popular programs (e.g., Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, defense, military active duty pay)
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin would face a host of chaotic, legally questionable, and technically difficult decisions of who to pay on time and who to put off until lawmakers act
Republican leaders keep promising that the debt ceiling will be raised in time, but their caucus can’t agree on how to do so
Among their disagreements is whether to pass a “clean” debt ceiling increase — meaning no other measures are attached to the bill — or tie any increase to spending cuts that many conservatives are calling for
