Some clever writing here from Catherine Rampell. Republicans are crisis actors who merely pretend to care about deficits - when it suits them.

Cue Sir David Attenborough to do the voiceover.

Source: Washington Post

Breaking scientific news: Researchers have identified a previously unknown species in D.C. Like cicadas, this species stays underground for years at a time, typically in four- or eight-year intervals. Its members hide away until there is an auspicious change in the ecosystem. Then, they bust out and wreak havoc.

This species: Republicans who care about deficits.

From 2017 through early 2021, members of the species lay dormant. Coincidentally, though, a nearly identical-looking sister species, Republicans who love debt, ruled Capitol Hill in their stead. With unified control of the House, Senate and White House, these debt-loving Republicans gleefully spilled red ink across the nation’s capital and beyond.

And what did these vermin do?

In total, over his first three years in office (and including a few more minor tax cuts), Trump added roughly $4.7 trillion to the federal debt above and beyond what the country had already been expected to borrow To be clear: This $4.7 trillion figure refers only to debt signed into law before the pandemic. If you include subsequent pandemic-related stimulus bills, the amount of new debt that Trump sealed with this signature would be several trillion dollars higher.

During all that time, there was rarely a peep from the right side of the aisle about deficit concerns. The debt limit — the statutory ceiling on how much the federal government can borrow to pay off its existing bills — was raised several times with little fuss, and no conditions. No one tried to hold it hostage.

Then, the ecosystem changed. Specifically: A Democrat reentered the White House. Our newly identified varietal of Republicans resurfaced and seized control.