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Shai Akabas

The Latest From Shai Akabas
Passengers wait for their bus in front of a national debt display in Washington in 2020. The debt limit has failed as a fiscal tool, and the political battles are both predictable and dangerous, Akabas writes.

Congress’ game of chicken: The debt limit

By Shai Akabas
Posted July 30, 2021 at 9:00am
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is deploying “extraordinary measures” to keep the government running after the reinstatement of the debt ceiling. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call file photo)

As the “X Date” looms, it’s time to defang the debt limit

By Shai Akabas
Posted March 4, 2019 at 5:01am
Speaker John A. Boehner may have staved off immediate disaster in 2011 with his Budget Control Act. But eight years later, lawmakers are still standing uncomfortably close to the edge, write Akabas and Shaw. (Tom Williams/Roll Call file photo)

On the debt limit, the best fiscal game is the one not played

By Shai Akabas and Tim Shaw
Posted February 4, 2019 at 5:01am
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin testifies during a House Financial Services hearing in February. An out-of-control national debt directly affects the household finances of millions of Americans, Akabas and Shaw write. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)

As Both Parties Play the Blame Game, Our Fiscal Future Hangs in the Balance

By Shai Akabas and Tim Shaw
Posted October 24, 2018 at 5:01am
CBO Director Keith Hall, right, talks with Senate Budget Chairman Michael B. Enzi before an oversight hearing in January. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call file photo)

Opinion: Congress, the CBO Is Not Your Football

By Sandy Davis and Shai Akabas
Posted March 19, 2018 at 5:02am
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is resorting to so-called extraordinary measures to pay the government’s bills after the debt limit suspension ended Dec. 8. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)

Opinion: How Debt Limit Drama Gets Resolved Is Up in the Air

By Shai Akabas and Tim Shaw
Posted December 11, 2017 at 5:01am