Rep. Green Questioned Sec. Yellen on U.S. Debt and Pakistan

Texas Representative Al Green (D) questioned Secretary of Treasury Janet Yellen (D) on the issues of the United States’s debt as well as Pakistan.

"Rep. Green asks Secretary Yellen about threat of default and requests help for Pakistan," tweeted Rep. Green.

https://twitter.com/RepAlGreen/status/1668676982802882567Speaking to Sec. Yellen, Rep. Green said, “I believe…you’ve done an outstanding job. I’m not ashamed to say it. I’m not ashamed to associate myself with you or with the President.”

“Madame Secretary, in your testimony…you indicate that while we were able to avoid default, the United States came dangerously close to the line. You indicate further that this can not be normalized. You said here, ‘Waiting until the last minute hurts our global leadership and credibility on the world’s stage.’”

Rep. Green then invited Sec. Yellen to give more information as to how the U.S. is harmed on the “world’s stage” by waiting until the last minute to default credit.

“The United States has the world’s deepest and most liquid capital markets and the U.S. Treasury’s securities are the benchmark for pricing of virtually all securities that are traded in financial markets and the [U.S.] dollar is, of course, the world’s key reserve currency,” said Sec. Yellen.

The Secretary of Treasury continued, stating that the U.S. has a history of paying its debts in a timely manner.

“All of that rests on an assumption, a belief, that the United States is committed to paying its bills when they come due, that we’re a creditor that deserves a triple a rating.”

After a dispute in Congress over raising the debt ceiling, The U.S. debt ceiling would officially be raised, just two days prior to the exhaustion of the borrowing authority of the U.S.

“We lost that rating in 2011 when Congress went right up to the wire in failing to raise the debt ceiling, and, even in this situation, one rating agency has put us on negative credit watch and this is something that threatens our position as a global leader in financial markets, and it threatens the well-being of American households that can see long-lasting increases in their cost of borrowing that come from this and, of course, if we actually did default on the debt the consequences would be catastrophic,” said Sec. Yellen.

Rep. Green then asked Yellen for her help in helping Pakistan which has faced flooding that has affected the entire country.

“Pakistan is a case study on the effects of climate change. As you know, Pakistan has suffered greatly from the flood that took place beginning in June of 2022. I’m going to ask, if you would, to use your good offices to help Pakistan. It clearly is in dire need of some aid from the IMF and the world bank as well. This global warming is something that we may deny. Pakistan is still suffering. It emits about 1% of the global greenhouse gases. We emit more than 10%.”

Rep. Green pleaded with Secretary Yellen to help the South Asian country.

“Pakistan suffers, please do what you can.”

The property tax dispute between Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick (R) and Governor Greg Abbott (R) continues.

In other news, Lt. Gov. Patrick took to Twitter to share his thoughts on the issue, as well as update Texans on his discussions with the governor.

“I met with @GovAbbott last week and he assured me he would sign a property tax bill if both the Senate and House agreed to it. #txlege"

The Texas lawmaker reminded Texans of the unanimous vote by the Texas House regarding the homestead exemption.

“The Texas House, including the Speaker, voted 147-0 last month for a $100K homestead exemption & compression. On the first day of the special session, the House didn't pass the homestead exemption, quit then went home."

In March 2023, the Lieutenant Governor released a statement regarding the homestead exemption. He stated that Senate Bill 3 would increase the exemption from $40,000 to $70,000, and for seniors over 65, it would increase to $100,000.

“The Senate and I will not abandon the $100K homestead exemption. It's the biggest tax cut in history for homeowners. The House needs to get back to work and pass the $100K homestead exemption with compression again.”