 
News of the Day ... in Perspective8/4/2004U.S. debt limit of $7.4 trillion must be raised. Unless Congress grants the U.S. Treasury Department the authority to exceed the $7.4 trillion debt cap, the federal government will be unable to finance the daily operation of government or to make interest payments on outstanding debt by September or October, stated Treasury Secretary John Snow. A federal default is considered unimaginable (Associated Press, 8/3/04). Unfunded liabilities of entitlement programs are not counted in the debt limit.
Additional information: Off-budget debt effectively exceeds national debt (www.ncpa.org/iss/bud/2002/pd021802a.html) The Dark Side of Entitlements, AAPS News, June 2002.
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