May 25, 2022
The latest reports about the debt ceiling negotiations are more upbeat than earlier in the week. Speaker McCarthy has told Members of Congress to stay flexible this weekend, but he’s not cancelling the Memorial Day recess, which also has to be interpreted as a good sign.
There’s still not a deal–or not one that anyone will share publicly, but it’s clear that the contours are coming together.
There’s a new poll out today from Navigator showing that the public is increasingly concerned and recognizes the urgency of raising the debt ceiling.
New Navigator Polling (See Poll)
The share of Americans who support raising the debt ceiling to avoid default is growing. By a 27-point margin, Americans support raising the debt ceiling when described as “the debt ceiling is the maximum amount of money the U.S. government can borrow to pay its bills… the government has already reached this amount, which means the debt ceiling needs to be raised in order to avoid defaulting on the government’s bills” (57 percent support – 30 percent oppose), a net 9-point increase in support since earlier this month when the margin of support was net +18 (53 percent support – 35 percent oppose).
- Support for raising the debt ceiling has increased most significantly among Republicans over the last six weeks. In early April, Republicans opposed raising the debt ceiling by a 30-point margin (29 percent support – 59 percent oppose), but have shifted toward supporting raising the ceiling by a net 23 points (net -7 now; 41 percent support – 48 percent oppose). This shift is reflected among both Republicans who watch Fox News with some regularity (from net -29 in early April to net -4 now, 44 percent support – 48 percent oppose) and those Republicans who are not regular Fox News consumers (from net -30 to net -9 now; 39 percent support – 48 percent oppose).
- 61 percent of Americans report hearing about a potential default if the debt ceiling is not raised by June 1st, up 4 points overall since earlier this month, driven by a 9-point increase among independents and a 5-point increase among Republicans. Among those hearing “a lot” or “some,” nearly seven in ten support raising the debt ceiling to avoid default (net +42; 68 percent support – 26 percent oppose).
There’s still time to let our Members of Congress know that constituents are paying attention by calling their offices!
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We know we can’t do it alone!
We are committed to continuing our work together and reshaping the conversation around progressive themes and values… the true American Dream, where every person has inherent human worth. We are all in this together. We all benefit from decisions which serve the common good. Government is of the people, by the people, and for the people, there is social, racial, economic and environmental justice for all and all citizens are cared for and respected. Why do we do this? We do it because it is the RIGHT thing to do. We do it in defense of the true American Dream.
As we move forward, we will continue to honor our nearly 45 year history of creating social change in Iowa and across the nation.
Here’s some of what we’ve been up to this past year:
- We worked with our partners and allies to stop the school voucher bill because public dollars belong in public schools.
- We fought to keep the bottle bill alive in Iowa with some changes.
- We stood with our allies at the Iowa Alliance for Justice around Medical Malpractice caps. Iowa juries will continue to decide the value of a human life in court cases that involve medical negligence and commercial vehicle crashes – NOT politicians because we know it is our Constitutional right to trial by jury and it must be protected.
- We advocated for the landmark bi-partisan Infrastructure Bill which will add: $3.4 billion in highway aid; $432 million for bridge replacement and repairs; $638 million to improve water infrastructure; $305 million for public transportation; $120 million for airport infrastructure and upgrades; $100 million+ for expanded broadband internet coverage; and $15 million to protect against cyberattacks.
- In a major victory for millions of Americans we fought for and celebrated the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act by House and Senate Democrats which contains historic improvements to Medicare and health coverage, requiring tax-dodging corporations to pay what they owe, delivers the largest investment in climate action in U.S. history
- We are leading the Lower Drug Prices Now campaign in Iowa because we know that no matter where people live, what they look like or what’s in their wallets, everyone deserves affordable medicine to have the best chance at healthy lives. We need guarantees when it comes to prescription medications. The greed from drug corporations and their powerful lobbyists are threatening our health and our pocketbook.
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Iowa Citizen Action Network (ICAN) is a grassroots public interest organization committed to creating social change in Iowa and across the nation. ICAN has united Iowa’s progressives for 45 years, and is leading efforts to change the public climate for progressive change. ICAN works in coalition with organizational affiliates from a wide range of constituencies, including religious, community, labor, senior, family farm and environmental organizations as well as with our thousands of individual members.
