https://pjmedia.com/tatler/2011/07/12/is-mcconnell-caving-or-being-cagey/feed/PJ Media is a leading news site covering culture, politics, faith, homeland security, and more. Our reporters and columnists provide original, in-depth analysis from a variety of perspectives.en-usSat, 13 Jun 2026 01:12:42 -0400<![CDATA[Earlier today Sen. Mitch McConnell declared that no debt ceiling deal is possible as long as Barack Obama is president. Now, McConnell is floating a proposal that&#8217;s not a deal exactly. It&#8217;s also not likely, at least at this point, to go very far. McConnell&#8217;s legislation would essentially allow the president to unilaterally raise the debt ceiling by a relatively small amount (meaning, actually a huge amount) in exchange for budget cuts, and doesn&#8217;t include any tax hikes or &#8220;revenue raisers&#8221; that the Democrats want. Congress could override the president but only with a 2/3 vote, which in the current environment is not happening. That means the cuts part is unlikely to kick in, even while the president gets to kick up the debt ceiling three times. Guy Benson explains it well at the second link; Red State&#8217;s Erick Erickson reacts here, comparing McConnell to Pontius Pilate. The problem with such a reaction is that it&#8217;s fairly typical of him, to the point that one never knows if the alarm he&#8217;s sounding is a real alarm signalling actual crisis or the proverbial cry of &#8220;Wolf!&#8221; JournoList alum Dave Weigel suggests the McConnell plan, which is a back-up plan, is a punt. Punts certainly aren&#8217;t Plan A, so he may have that right. PJ alum Jennifer Rubin broke the story and weighs in here. Her take:]]>Tue, 12 Jul 2011 13:41:55 -0400<![CDATA[Bryan Preston]]>https://pjmedia.com/bryan-preston-1/2011/07/12/is-mcconnell-caving-or-being-cagey-n150225