Sen. Rand Paul Introduces Default Protection Act

On Tuesday, Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) introduced the Default Protection Act, which would require President Barack Obama to “prioritize federal revenue to interest on the national debt.”

Paul added that he believed “we should stand and fight for a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution before we raise the debt ceiling.”

The United States hit its debt limit on December 31, 2012, and the measures the U.S. Treasury have taken to make the country’s payments are expected to be exhausted shortly before March of this year.

Paul’s bill, in an attempt to remove the chance of a complete government default, would prioritize which federal programs should be held at the highest priority to continue receiving government funding while the country works to pay down the interest on the debt. 

Some of my Republican colleagues in the House have decided to surrender to the Democrats’ annual plan to increase the debt ceiling,” Paul said in a statement. “My legislation takes the possibility of default off the table so we can continue to push for fiscal restraint. There is no reason the government would – or should – responsibly consider the idea of default.”