Buffett: GOP Threatening To 'Blow Your Brains Out' Over Debt Ceiling
James Sunshine The Huffington Post First Posted: 7/7/11 04:01 PM ET Updated: 7/8/11 01:38 AM ET
Republicans are playing a dangerous game by refusing to raise the debt ceiling, according to Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett.
"We raised the debt ceiling seven times during the Bush Administration," Buffett told CNBC on Thursday. Now, the Republican-controlled Congress is "trying to use the incentive now that we're going to blow your brains out, America, in terms of your debt worthiness over time."
If Congress fails to raise the borrowing limit of the federal government by August 2, the date when the U.S. will reach the limit of its borrowing abilities, it will likely begin defaulting on its loans.
But even with this information, Buffett is unfazed.
"We had debt at 120 percent of the GDP, far higher than this, after World War II and no one went around threatening that we're going to ruin the credit of the United States or something in order to get a better balance of debt to GDP."
Some experts, like former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, have floated the idea of the Treasury paying some obligations while not paying others. This, Buffett says, is ludicrous.
"If you don't send out social security checks, I would hate to think about the credit meeting at S&P and Moody's the next morning," Buffett told CNBC. "If you're not paying millions and millions and millions of people that range in age from 65 on up, money you promised them, you're not a AAA." A triple-A credit rating is the highest possible rating that can be received.
Register for free to join our community of investors and share your ideas. You will also get access to streaming quotes, interactive charts, trades, portfolio, live options flow and more tools.