US Government Debt Different - Finance Department - University of ...

Jeremy Kreisberg & Kelley O’Mara (Under the Supervision of Professor Howell Jackson)support of his argument, Professor Tribe tracks the admonition ofexecutive revenue-raising from England through the “battle cry of theAmerican Revolution . . . ‘No taxation without representation!’” 168In addition, Professor Tribe cites various examples of Presidents whorefused to spend money 169 in contrast to zero examples of a Presidentwho unilaterally raised revenue and a “deeply-rooted tradition ofprioritizing personal liberty from government imposition overaffirmative expectations of government payment.” 170281B. The President Cannot Prioritize Spending Obligations;Therefore, Treasury Must Follow “First In, First Out”ProceduresIf the President is bound by the debt limit, he may not have the legalauthority to unilaterally prioritize spending obligations. As a result,Treasury may have to continue to pay its bills as they come due usinga “First In, First Out” (“FIFO”) procedure. 171The 1985 Senate Finance Committee, under the leadership of BobPackwood, espoused this theory. 172 The Committee found, based onthe “best available information,” that the President and the Secretaryof the Treasury have no authority to prioritize payments. 173 It stated,“each law that authorizes expenditures or makes appropriations standson equal footing, and there are no grounds for the Administrationto distinguish a payment for any one program over any otherprogram.” 174 The report expected the Secretary of the Treasury tofulfill its spending obligations “as they come due while cash remainsin the till.” 175In response to Senator Packwood and the Senate Finance Committee,the Government Accountability Office wrote, “[w]e are aware of no168Id.169Id. E.g. Ulysses Grant, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry Truman, and Richard Nixon.170Id.171See Mindy R. Levit, Clinton T. Brass, Thomas J. Nicola, Dawn Nuschler, & Alison M.Shelton, Reaching the Debt Limit: Background and Potential Effects on Government Operations,Cong. Research Serv. 7-8 (July 27, 2011).172S. Rep. No. 99-144, at 5 (Sept. 26, 1985).173Id.174Id.175Id.