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Historians put an asterisk on US debt claim

By Connie Cass
Published October 14, 2013 5:54pm ET
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Historians put an asterisk on US debt claim
FILE - This Aug. 19, 2012 file photo shows military re enactors in the uniforms of U.S. Marines from the War of 1812, marching in front of the USS Constitution, the U.S. Navy's oldest commissioned warship, moments after the vessel arrived at her berth in Charlestown Navy Yard in Boston to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the ship's victory over HMS Guerriere in the War of 1812. One bit of gospel is endlessly recited in the debt limit standoff: The United States has never defaulted. But history's not that simple. America has briefly stiffed some of its creditors on at least two occasions: subsequent to the War of 1812, the U.S. Treasury stood empty in 1814, Washington lay in ruins, and even the soldiers fighting the British weren't getting paid; the second time was blamed partly on lawmakers, who squabbled right down to the deadline before raising the debt limit in 1979, ultimately costing taxpayers billions of dollars. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File) | Steven Senne

WASHINGTON (AP) — You hear a perfect record cited over and over in the debt limit debate: The United States has never defaulted. Better put an asterisk by that.

America has briefly stiffed some of its creditors on at least two occasions.

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