US Nears Debt Default as October 18 Deadline Looms
By Matt Egan, The United States could be just weeks away from defaulting on its debt for the first time ever. The $28.4 trillion debt limit was reinstated August 1. Since then, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has been keeping the nation’s finances afloat by using emergency accounting maneuvers. Known as “extraordinary measures,” these steps allow the government to borrow additional funds without breaching the debt ceiling. But Yellen warned lawmakers this week that if Congress fails to raise, or suspend, the debt ceiling, the federal government will exhaust those extraordinary measures by October 18. “At that point, we expect Treasury would be left with