Data for Progress Debt Ceiling Resource Guide
After months of speculation, Speaker McCarthy has officially unveiled his budget proposal that conditions support for raising the debt ceiling on significant budget cuts — a bill that was passed by the House on April 26. In exchange for a temporary, one-year debt ceiling increase of $1.5 trillion, McCarthy is taking direct aim at President Biden’s agenda through targeted spending cuts.
Among other provisions, the Limit, Save, Grow Act of 2023 would:
→ Reverse Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan
→ Repeal the clean energy tax credits passed under the Inflation Reduction Act
→ Cut funding from the Inflation Reduction Act for the Internal Revenue Service
→ Make it harder for millions of Americans to qualify for Medicaid and SNAP
→ Cut billions of dollars from key social programs like public education and healthcare.
If Republicans fail to raise the debt ceiling, they put the U.S. at risk of defaulting on its debt this summer. Letting the U.S. default on its debt would devastate both the domestic and global economy, killing jobs for millions of Americans and preventing the government from funding Social Security, Medicare, and other key programs. While Congress has raised the debt ceiling 78 times since 1960 — including three times under the Trump administration — Republicans are putting our economy at tremendous risk by using the debt ceiling as a bargaining chip to demand severe cuts to critical programs.
While Speaker McCarthy and Republicans let the country hurtle toward defaulting on its debt, Data for Progress polling has repeatedly found that voters support cleanly raising the debt ceiling. Moreover, they don’t want Republicans to cut funding for popular social programs, nor do they want Republicans to roll back key provisions in the IRA.
The facts:
Fifty-eight percent of voters support raising the debt ceiling, including 78 percent of Democrats and 56 percent of Independents.
By a +16-point margin, voters support permanently eliminating the debt ceiling.
By a +10-point margin, voters believe Republicans would be hypocritical for refusing to raise the debt ceiling.
On Medicaid and SNAP:
Eighty-nine percent of voters believe that funding for Medicaid should either be increased or remain the same; only 7 percent of voters believe that Medicaid funding should be cut.
Sixty-seven percent of voters support increasing funding for SNAP.
Fifty-five percent of voters believe the monthly household benefit for SNAP is too low.
Fifty-seven percent of voters support making the SNAP benefit expansion under COVID permanent.
On the Inflation Reduction Act:
As of November 2022, voters support the Inflation Reduction Act by a +36-point margin, including 89 percent of Democrats and 61 percent of Independents.
Data for Progress jobs analysis finds the energy and climate provisions of IRA could create or preserve 1 million jobs from 2023 to 2032 and contribute approximately $1.7 trillion to U.S. GDP over the same period.
Voters across partisan identities overwhelmingly support the climate and clean energy investments in the IRA, including its energy efficiency rebates (+48-point margin); fee on methane (+45-point margin); and clean energy tax credits (+39-point margin).
Fifty-nine percent of voters support funding the IRS to better enforce taxes on multimillionaires, billionaires, and large corporations.
A plurality of voters (47 percent) say that Republicans should not roll back key components of the IRA, including Democrats by a +53-point margin and Independents by a +16-point margin.
Seventy-one percent of voters say they would be upset if Republicans made it more expensive for American families to make their homes energy efficient.
Just over half of voters (51 percent) also say they would be upset if Republicans rolled back key tax credits and financial incentives for clean energy production and job growth.
On Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan:
When given a detailed description of what President Biden’s student debt forgiveness plan would accomplish, likely voters support it by a +13-point margin.
All elements of the student debt forgiveness plan have greater than 50 percent support.
The most popular provisions include covering borrowers’ unpaid interest (64 percent), capping monthly payments at five percent of income (61 percent), and forgiving $20,000 for Pell Grant recipients (57 percent).