No. of Recommendations: 2
Treasury bonds are Public Debt (also known as government debt). Other bills or obligations to pay are Debt (Social Security payments, Medicare payments to hospitals, defense contract payments, NIH grant payments, federal employee pay).
Congress is considering raising the public debt limit. The U.S. will make all public debt payments on time, but Fitch Ratings agency placed the U.S. on 'ratings watch negative'. Not making public debt payments would be a credit default. Even with the public debt ceiling, the Treasury needs access to the markets to rollover debt, and will prioritize making bond payments on time. The 14th amendment directs the Treasury to pay public debt.
The value of the U.S. currency is based on economic strength, monetary policy, legal stability, and political stability. Making bond payments on time is an important part of that.
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The 14th amendment says "The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned."
31 U.S. Code § 3101 - Public debt limit
"The face amount of obligations issued under this chapter and the face amount of obligations whose principal and interest are guaranteed by the United States Government (except guaranteed obligations held by the Secretary of the Treasury) may not be more than $14,294,000,000,000, outstanding at one time"
https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/31/3101default
1: neglect
2 archaic : fault
3 economics : failure to pay financial debts
4a law : failure to appear
4b : failure to compete
5a : a selection made usually automatically
5b computers : a selection automatically used
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/defaultdebt
1: something owed : obligation
2: a state of being under obligation to pay
3 law and business : the common-law action for the recovery of money held to be due
4: sin, trespass
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/debtPublic Debt (also known as government debt): obligations of governments, particularly those evidenced by securities, to pay certain sums to the holders at some future time.
https://www.britannica.com/money/topic/public-debtCourt sets hearing to consider suspending debt limit law as unconstitutional, May 23, 2023
"The hearing, set for May 31 at 2 p.m... If the limit is reached, NAGE contends Biden would be forced to take over Congress's spending authority by deciding which payments to prioritize over others. It also would effectively amount to a line-item veto, the union argues, which the Supreme Court has previously rejected."
https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/40174...Debt ceiling talks teeter on the brink, as lawmakers leave town for weekend without a deal, May 25, 2023
"Fitch Ratings agency placed the United States' AAA credit on 'ratings watch negative,' warning of a possible downgrade because of what it called the brinkmanship and political partisanship surrounding the debate over lifting the debt ceiling."
https://apnews.com/article/debt-limit-biden-mccart... 