A parting gift from one cabinet official reset the stakes in the debt ceiling debate as a post-inauguration deadline required “extraordinary measures.”
Among the criticisms of President Joe Biden’s administration was the extent to which the incumbent took vacations. Friday, as a number of his officials followed suit in skipping town for the holiday weekend that would end with the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen revealed, in what was being deemed her last official act, that the debt limit would be reached Tuesday.
In a letter addressed to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La..) and other congressional leaders, the outgoing secretary explained that “extraordinary measures” would go into effect on Jan. 21 to avoid default.
As part of the response, Yellen detailed the suspension of investments in the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund as well as the Postal Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund, and that those funds would only be made whole at such time that the debt limit was increased or suspended.
“The period of time that extraordinary measures may last is subject to considerable uncertainty, including the challenges of forecasting the payments and receipts of the U.S. Government months into the future,” wrote the secretary. “The debt limit does not authorize new spending, but it creates a risk that the federal government might not be able to finance its existing legal obligations that Congress and Presidents of both parties have made in the past.”
“I respectfully urge Congress to act promptly to protect the full faith and credit of the United States,” she added.
Slamming the secretary and the outgoing administration, the X account ‘amuse’ wrote, “Biden’s team celebrated as everyone left work for the last time last night. On her way out Secretary Yellen decided to drop a bomb announcing the US will run out of money on Trump’s first full day in office. Great work!”
A similarly scathing rebuke of Yellen likened the departing official to DC Comics’ Joker with a reference to the 2008 film “The Dark Knight” where dressed as a nurse, the Crown Prince of Crime demolished a hospital, contending, “Yellen literally waited until 5pm on her last day to drop the bombshell that the U.S. is out of money on Tuesday.”
DEBT: Biden’s team celebrated as everyone left work for the last time last night. On her way out Secretary Yellen decided to drop a bomb announcing the US will run out of money on Trump’s first full day in office. Great work! https://t.co/6TPYuV2PiU pic.twitter.com/3mS9MWgnWg
— @amuse (@amuse) January 18, 2025
Yellen literally waited until 5pm on her last day to drop the bombshell that the U.S. is out of money on Tuesday https://t.co/K1qj0kyFxr pic.twitter.com/crgjNdVcZ5
— Financelot (@FinanceLancelot) January 18, 2025
Debate on the debt ceiling had been integral in a December vote to continue funding the federal government as Trump had pushed for the GOP-controlled House for legislation to include an extension of the debt ceiling or its outright elimination ahead of his return to the White House.
Speaking with Fox News’s Maria Bartiromo in December, White House press secretary designee Karoline Leavitt had said of the “fantastic idea” to do away with the limit, “The continuing resolution that passed happened because of President Trump. It includes critical aid for our farmers, critical aid, and disaster relief for our fellow Americans who were impacted by Hurricane Helene.”
“But as soon as Republicans return to the Hill in January, they have to deal with the debt ceiling,” she went on. “This is the last tool in Senator Schumer and the Democrats’ toolbox to try to obstruct President Trump’s America First agenda.”
Ahead of Yellen’s announcement, the Freedom Caucus had proposed a two-bill solution on funding that would raise the debt ceiling by roughly $4 trillion while using budget reconciliation to lower the threshold from 60 to 51 votes to take full advantage of the GOP majority.
That proposal had been presented to Trump who favored a single bill but was said to be open to two bills to tackle the issue.
As many continued to slam the timing of the letter from Yellen, some saw the immediacy of the debt ceiling debate as a positive, especially as it pertained to efforts to tackle out-of-control spending in Washington, D.C.
“Peaceful transition”
— Wise Guy™️ (@realwiseacre) January 18, 2025
Raiding the Treasury is the last thing the Romans did.
— Financelot (@FinanceLancelot) January 18, 2025
Almost as if it were designed to happen on this date.
— Vanessa (@technologypoet) January 18, 2025
Well, looks like a lot of government employees will be losing their jobs.
Well done!
— Jammles (@jammles9) January 18, 2025
Perfect time to fire all Washington Bureaucrats. Tell them we don’t have money. Then hire new people.
— Audacious (@IdeasFactory009) January 18, 2025
— Richard Allen (@Richard93494430) January 17, 2025
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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