Durbin Says Short-Term Debt Increase Could ‘Jeopardize’ Economy

July 24 (Bloomberg) -- Dick Durbin, the second-ranking Democrat in the U.S. Senate, said it would be dangerous to the economy for Congress to pass a shorter-term debt ceiling increase than the $2.4 trillion boost President Barack Obama has requested.

“A short-term extension of the debt ceiling is going to jeopardize our economy,” Durbin, of Illinois, said in an interview on CBS’s “Face the Nation” program, as House Speaker John Boehner considered forcing action on such a plan. “We can’t do that.”

Durbin said Boehner, an Ohio Republican, is ignoring the warnings of credit rating companies that have said they may downgrade U.S. debt if Congress fails to enact a long-term plan to address deficits.

“The American economy is too fragile at this point in the recovery to allow that to happen,” Durbin said.

--Editors: Robin Meszoly, Romaine Bostick

To contact the reporter on this story: Julie Hirschfeld Davis in Washington at jdavis159@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Mark Silva at msilva34@bloomberg.net