Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley declared at a Department of Defense press conference on Thursday that a default brought by the debt ceiling crisis would have “significant economic consequences that would translate into serious economic consequences.”

I think there’s no doubt whatsoever that there would be a very significant negative impact on the readiness, morale, and capabilities of the United States military if we defaulted and didn’t reach a debt ceiling thing. As well as reputational damage internationally…I think it would be very, very significant without a doubt in that it would have absolutely clear, unambiguous implications on national security.

As the White House and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy are in the process of negotiating a deal that keeps the US from going into default while respecting the economic and political realities of the situation (see POLL: Americans Blame Both Parties if Government Defaults on Debt, BREAKING: Biden Caves, He and McCarthy List Points of Agreement, Take Possibility of Default off the Table, and House Democrats Extremely Frustrated, Don’t Like What They’re Hearing on Debt Ceiling Negotiations) a general officer on active duty inserted himself into a political debate that, contrary to his statements, does not have national security implications.

This is an unprecedented statement by a Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman on a domestic political dispute. Not only is this meddling in domestic politics in the same way that Milley did during the latter days of the Trump administration, but his statement is also fatuous bullsh**. The issue at hand is a default on US Treasury obligations, not the absence of appropriations and a government shutdown.

               CREDIT: Department of Defense

Military Service Chiefs Weaponized to Serve Biden

More troubling than Milley’s statement is that the Biden Defense Department has weaponized the entire military leadership of the US military to push Joe Biden’s agenda.

The U.S. military’s service chiefs warned of devastating consequences to their ability to defend the nation if Congress fails to resolve the looming debt ceiling crisis.

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“Having a reliable, predictable budget … is critical to building the kind of frontline readiness that the nation expects from our military,” [Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Linda] Fagan said during a May 22 panel discussion hosted by the Council on Foreign Relations.

From paying troops to assuring investments for acquisitions, “anything that creates uncertainty around that immediately begins to impact certainly our ability as a Coast Guard to provide that national security for the nation and creates uncertainty and doubt in the [Joint] Force.”

The instability and uncertainty of the debt ceiling crisis could cause “problems on a global scale,” said Chief of Space Operations Gen. B. Chance Saltzman.

“Financial stability increases credibility,” he said. “With our allies, with our partners, we have to remember that in this era of great power competition, it’s a battle for the narrative. Who controls the narrative? What does a rules-based order look like?”

Demonstrating stability in a “relatively dangerous global environment, I think, helps preserve the kind of narrative that supports U.S. interests,” he added.

Air Force Chief of Staff Charles “CQ” Brown, Jr. and Army Chief of Staff Gen. James McConville highlighted the effects that missing paychecks would have on servicemembers in the near term, from decreasing morale to the uncertainty of feeding their families. Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Michael Gilday noted the United States defaulting due to the debt ceiling is a “place that we’ve never been before,” which makes it difficult to predict the follow-on effects.

“Of course, there’s impacts on sailors, servicemembers and their families, but also … the arsenal of democracy across America that supports everything that we do would be dramatically affected,” Gilday said. “I think the confidence piece is absolutely critical here — not just allies and partners as they look at the United States — but also our own confidence in ourselves, which is so important in a fighting force.

“I think that the potential here could be catastrophic for us, and I don’t say that lightly,” he added.

When asked how long it would take to go from default to catastrophe, Gilday said: “That’s tough to predict. If people can’t depend on a paycheck, if industry can’t depend on flow of funds to pay their people, it probably wouldn’t take long.”

Debt Ceiling and Default “Crises” Are Not Rare

If we look back over the last twenty years, we can see that there has been a debt ceiling “crisis” nearly every other year. This is a list of them.

• 2001: The debt ceiling was raised by $845 billion in August 2001.
• 2006: The debt ceiling was raised by $800 billion in October 2006.
• 2008: The debt ceiling was raised by $700 billion in May 2008.
• 2011: The debt ceiling was raised by $2.1 trillion in August 2011.
• 2013: The debt ceiling was raised by $400 billion in October 2013.
• 2015: The debt ceiling was raised by $1.1 trillion in December 2015.
• 2017: The debt ceiling was suspended until March 1, 2019.
• 2019: The debt ceiling was raised by $200 billion in September 2019.

We can also see that we approach the brink of default in about one-third of the cases.

• 2001: The US came within days of defaulting on its debt when Congress failed to pass a budget. President Bush and Congress reached a last-minute agreement to pass a budget that included a provision to raise the debt ceiling.
• 2011: The US came within hours of defaulting on its debt when Congress failed to raise the debt ceiling. Barack Obama and Congress reached a last-minute agreement to raise the debt ceiling.
• 2013: The US came within days of defaulting on its debt when Congress failed to raise the debt ceiling. Barack Obama and Congress reached a last-minute agreement to raise the debt ceiling.

Despite this happening under presidents of both parties, this is the first time the military service chiefs have been sent out to support the White House.

One Step Closer to Banana Republic

Under the misrule of Joe Biden, we’ve seen the US take the first tentative steps towards banana republic status (Terrified CNN Decries ‘Horrible’ New Polling for Joe Biden, and It Only Gets Worse From There). Vote fraud had been baked into election law and administration. The FBI has made that short jump from an out-of-control police force to a Democrat goon squad. The persecution of people for political dissent is now part of our culture. For the first time ever, we are seeing an attempt to imprison a former president for political crimes. Our debt is out of control, and we seem to challenge Argentina’s status in currency debasement. And now our historically apolitical military is harnessed to Joe Biden’s political priorities.