There's going to be a lot of reelin' and a-rockin' in Washington as we move up to the debt ceiling deadline, a lot of loud sounds pumping out from those stately buildings - the White House, the Treasury, the Federal Reserve - in a cacophony of misinformation, misdirection, distraction and...well, let's not be nasty. The key claim of the administration as we move up to the debt ceiling deadline is that Congress has a responsibility to maintain the good faith of the debt of the federal government.   The administration will say that should Congress not raise the debt ceiling, that will have a catastrophic effect on federal debt, the standing of the United States, and on the world economy. Which would be a pretty compelling argument if it were true.  But it isn't.  Except for those very rare years when the federal government runs a surplus, the United States, like virtually every country in history, does not repay its debt.  But if it doesn't repay its debt,...(Read Full Post)