Oct 08 2013  Can the government still run without raising the
debt ceiling?  I have been trying to understand some of the
arcane issues surrounding the way the US government is run and
what follows is what I have been able to learn. Take it with a
grain of salt since I am neither an economist nor an accountant.
The current debt limit, the maximum amount that the government
is allowed to borrow, was raised on May 19, 2013 to $16.70
trillion, which is projected to be reached on October 17, 2013.
When the government’s expenditures exceed the amount it has in
its checking account, the government is authorized to sell US
Treasury notes to raise cash make up the difference provided the
total amount does not exceed that limit.  As of October 4, 2013
the government had $29 billion in its checking account, down
from $88 billion at the beginning of October. It is this account
into which daily revenue goes in and from which daily
expenditure goes out. This number goes up and down depending on
the day but the general tr