"I cannot guarantee that those checks go out on August 3rd if we haven't resolved this issue. Because there may simply not be the money in the coffers to do it," Mr. Obama said...Were my mother-in-law not to receive her August Social Security check, what would happen to her? Catatonic and totally dependent upon the care of health professionals, she is in Stage 7 Alzheimer's and resides in a nursing home, the fee for which is paid, in large part, by her monthly Social Security check.
The facts are these:
...However, according to the Daily Treasury Statements published by the U.S. Treasury Department, the ongoing flow of federal tax revenue since the Treasury declared that it had hit the debt limit on May 16 has been more than sufficient to cover the combined costs of federal spending on interest payments, Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, the Veterans Affairs department and federal workers wages and insurance benefits (including wages and insurance benefits for military personnel).If the August checks do not go out, that will be by Obama's direct orders.
Specifically, according to the Daily Treasury Statements, as of the close of business on May 16, the federal government had taken in $1.333454 trillion in tax revenues since the beginning of fiscal 2011. By the close of business on July 7, tax revenues for fiscal 2011 had grown to $1.629630 trillion. Therefore, between May 16 and July 7 the federal government took in a total of $296.176 billion in new tax revenue.
In that same time period, total interest payments on the national debt equaled $14.632 billion....
