As we noted earlier this week, there is just one little problem with the left’s complaints that Republicans are holding the nation hostage over the debt limit: when push comes to shove, it is Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner that is going to be the one holding the gun. The Government Accountability office has certified that once the debt limit is reached, Geithner has complete discretion over which bills to pay. And since the Congressional Budget Office has estimated that tax revenue will be $2.23 trillion for this fiscal year, while interest payments on debt will only total $213 billion, the only reason the federal government would ever default on its debt is if Geithner chose to do so.
Seventeen GOP senators hammered home this point today with a letter to Geithner reading:
