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Subscribe to RSSA $1 trillion platinum coin will not be minted as a way of sidestepping the debt ceiling, the Treasury and the White House said Saturday.
The idea has been floated as a way to avoid a bruising fight in Congress over raising the ceiling. Among the proponents is Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman.
“By minting a $1 trillion coin, then depositing it at the Fed, the Treasury could acquire enough cash to sidestep the debt ceiling — while doing no economic harm at all,” Krugman said in a column in The New York Times.
But the White House and the Treasury nixed that on Saturday.
"Neither the Treasury Department nor the Federal Reserve believes that the law can or should be used to facilitate the production of platinum coins for the purpose of avoiding an increase in the debt limit," Treasury spokesman Anthony Coley said.
And the White House said in a statement issued by Press Secretary Jay Carney: "There are only two options to deal with the debt limit: Congress can pay its bills or it can fail to act and put the nation into default. When Congressional Republicans played politics with this issue last time, putting us at the edge of default, it was a blow to our economic recovery, causing our nation's credit rating to be downgraded. ... Congress needs to do its job."
Proponents of the coin have said they want to avoid a repeat of the near-self-induced default by the U.S. Treasury in July 2011. That battle caused the stock market to fall, cost the U.S. its Triple-A credit rating and produced the still ticking “fiscal cliff" budget time bomb.
The government has hit its $16.4 trillion borrowing limit, The Associated Press notes, and could begin running out of money by late February or early March.
On Friday, Senate Democratic leaders urged President Barack Obama to act unilaterally to increase the nation's debt limit, without congressional approval. But the White House has been loath to assert broad executive privilege to increase the amount of money the government is able to borrow in order to cover its obligations.
NBC News' John Schoen and Michael O'Brien contributed to this report.
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Well of course they're not going to make a coin like that.Who could make change for it.Well China maybe.
The republicans blew it with the stupid fiscal cliff deal. They gave half of their negotiating cards away. Any action could have been retroactive if taken after the first of the year and they could have used that leverage with the real coming crisis, the debt. But we don't have a spending problem right?
both sides blew it. grandstanding, brinksmanship, horse@!$%#. fire them all.
thats just great, VP talking about exec power to control guns and this guy wont use that same executive power to save his ass. That pretty much tells you everything you need to know about this Presidents Legacy.
Get ready to pay the government to become a community based organization that doles out work and food to those who support the regime. We had a word for that back about a hundred years ago, seems to have evolved from Communism to social democracy.
Well, it's a fine idea on the outset, but then. . . who would give you change for it?
I swear, our government deliberately comes up with the most ridiculous concepts only to make themselves look like geniuses for shutting those very concepts down.
Guess they have to look industrious and important somehow.
A trillion dollar coin is really OK. It is a symbol of nonsense. Who is going to steal it and cash it in ?
hahahahaha
Makes me wonder the way the price of things keeps going up if you might just have to use that coin in a vending machine just to buy a candy bar(small size)!!!!!
If we mint this coin it should have Obama's "I don't ever have to pay this @!$%# back' smile on his face.
It isn't just the liberals, and it isn't just the gop. It is all of us and our culture of living WAY beyond our means on borrowed money.
Congress needs to do its job? Another example of those OUTSTANDING leadership skills, Obuma.
Silly article and idea, the Federal Reserve does this already. But in $1,$2,$5,$10,$20,$100,$500,$1000,$10000 increments.
I understand your point and agree. However, a correction is due. From what I found on the US Treasury web site:
The present denominations of our currency in production are $1, $2, 5$, $10, $20, $50 and $100. On July 14, 1969, David M. Kennedy, the 60th Secretary of the Treasury, and officials at the Federal Reserve Board announced that they would immediately stop distributing currency in denominations of $500, $1,000, $5,000 and $10,000. Production of these denominations stopped during World War II. The largest denomination of currency ever printed by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) was the $100,000 Series 1934 Gold Certificate featuring the portrait of President Wilson.
Pigotry, You have way too much time on your hands. Today, being Sunday I'm sure there won't be any runs to the mail box for your freebees the government, and my tax dollars give your sorry ass. You obviously have your head so far up Odumb@!$%#'s ass that you are hillucinating on his beer farts. Odumb@!$%# will not be happy until this country has to put up the "for sale" sign. Then, and only then will he have accomplished Soros' dream. He's too stupid to do this on his own.
To the dismay of many liberal/progressive economists, Obama just signed into law legislation that makes the Bush Era tax cuts permanent for 99.3% of taxpayers, something Democrats had been fighting to prevent for 12 years. This new tax package just about puts the final nail in the coffin of "Big Government", as it adds another $4 trillion to the national debt over the next 10 years. The only way to fund big government programs is with higher taxes on the middle class, as there are not enough higher income folks to fund it. It is now just a matter of time before we see the spending cuts that will be forced upon a Congress and federal government not used to having to prioritize what will be funded and what will not. It is about time.
Thanks, Jay Carney. The continuation of childish finger-pointing at the opposing party is such great, new entertainment - it's what all American citizens never tire of hearing. Keep it up.
There are 'one million' millions in one trillion.
A billion= $1, 000 millions
A trillion= $1,000,000 millions or a million millions
The U.S. national debt is 16 trillion and counting. $16,000,000,000,000
If that debt was on your credit card, shouldn't you start paying it back? Or would you be like Obama and want to get another credit card?
Let the mint strike this coin! Only make it out of and equal too the value of platinum, just like back in the good old days of the gold and silver standards. Based on the spot market of Platinum, about $1,600/oz, this coin should weigh in at just under 20,000 tons. At today's rate of mining, it will take 100 years just to scrape that much Platinum out of the dirt, plenty of time to design and build a nice coin purse to keep the bugger warm.
Fix our trade deficit with China and we wouldnt have this $16 TRILLION debt!!! China owns most of our current debt and has been carrying us for years all because we are willing to let them dump their products on our shelves for the ''privilege'' of having them take on more debt!!! Like a bookie owed money by a gambler they as well as the other countries we owe money to can call in their markers at any time!!!
China has just over $1 trillion of our debt, not a small number but certainly not "most" of our current debt. It turns out that Japan has just under $1 trillion of our debt. The biggest holder of our debt is probably the Social Security Trust Fund, about $2.6 trillion.
And most of the rest is held by US investors small and large. Prior to IRAs and 401ks, investing in T-Bills was the way to build your retirement nest egg. Many still do this with their IRAs and 401ks as they approach retirement age as they are by far the safest investment vehicle available. Unlike stocks, there is no volatility in Treasuries. The return just varies depending upon when they were purchased.
I can fix all Americas problems!
1) Withdraw from the Free Trade Organization.
2) Abolish the Free Trade Acts America is signed into.
3) Industrialize America to produce what we consume to put people back to work and paying taxes.
4) Remove Supplemental Security Income (SSI) from the back of Social Security and back onto the States.
5) Reform Government and place term limits at all levels, no more career Politicians.
6) Politicians will have the same benefits as the people, this alone will save billions!
The above mentioned changes alone will be a good start to correcting Americas problems!
I long for the Clinton days when the deficit was paid off, people was working and paying taxes!
The deficit wasn't 'paid off' under Clinton. While the debt did not grow at nearly the pace it is today, it still grew.
Go ahead let the mint strike this coin! Only make it out of and equal too the value of platinum just like back in the good old days of the gold and silver standards. Based on the current platinum market which comes in at about $1600/oz it would make this coin come in at the nice hefty weight of just under 20000 tons. At todays rate of mining it would take 100 years just to scrape that much Platinum out of the dirt. Thats plenty of time to design and build a nice coin purse to keep the bugger warm.
Hey Bill, that's just what I was thinking
Obama has to be disappointed... The way he spends this would have been convenient.
This country is broken...
Here we are the most powerful nation on the face of the Earth and we got a bunch of morons running the government. Especially the Republicans and that idiot John Boehner but the Dems aren't without fault. What I want to know is when we are gonna wake up and vote these idiots out of office. Why don't some good ole boy thats NOT a politician, just a everyday guy run for President. Heck, he couldn't do any worse than that bunch of idiots thats in there now.
after reading this, i just wonder just whom you voted for.
"We" just voted Boehner and all the members of the House plus 1/3 of the Senate into office. You may not like the various folks people elected to represent them in Congress, but you only get to vote for those who represent you.
What...the treasury under the current leadership isn't worth a "plug nickel" and they are talking about minting a coin worth something...this damned guy is as phony as a famned wooden nickel.
I asked the tooth fairy for a trillion dollar coin but all i got was a quarter
All I can say is, go ahead and lift the debt ceiling, go over the fiscal cliff, whatever. All it means is that during and after the ensuing economic collapse, all the government/society teat-suckers will die, because they have no concept of how to support themselves except on other peoples money. Those of us that "have it" so far as motivation, hard work, and survival is concerned, with thereafter live, thrive, and be able to elect a government comprised of like-minded people who know how to mind the store, not give it away. It would be worth the relatively short-term inconvenience, no matter how harsh it would be.
Excuse me, but it is NOT the Republicans who are playing political games. When a person or company is incapable of paying their bills because of gross overspending the solution is NOT to extend the credit limit, but to stop overspending! The fiscal cliff is real and the minting of a coin will NOT stop that! What WILL stop it is when the public demands responsible actions from Obama and the Democrats and STOP wasting mone on proven and otherwise CRIMINAL actions!