During the George W. Bush years, the current GOP leaders voted 19 times to raise the debt limit by $4 trillion and now they want to default on their debts by holding the American Middle Class (what’s left of it) and the most vulnerable hostage? At the beginning of the Bush presidency, the debt limit was $5.95 trillion. Bush increased the debt to $9.815 trillion, according to reporting at http://thinkprogress.org.
June 2002: Congress approves a $450 billion increase, raising the debt limit to $6.4 trillion. Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, and Eric Cantor, R-Va., vote “yea,” Sen. John Kyl, R-Ariz., votes “nay.”
May 2003: Congress approves a $900 billion increase, raising the debt limit to $7.384 trillion. All four approve.
November 2004: Congress approves an $800 billion increase, raising the debt limit to $8.1 trillion. All four approve.