By Charlotte Young
As Congress is deep in talks to fine-tune the debt ceiling deal and take a vote, it looks like who they really should be asking advice from are the big players at Apple.
According to the BBC, Apple has more cash on hand than the US government. The US Treasury Department shows an operating cash balance of $73.7 billion dollars, compared to Apple’s most recent sales report, which put its reserves at $76.4 billion.
In the midst of a financial downside for many, people seemingly don’t mind spending extra to buy the latest in technology. Apple’s revenue reportedly jumped 82 percent in the past quarter, a company record. The latest iPhone shipment was at 20.3 million, while there were about 9.25 million iPad shipments.
Even President Barack Obama is an Apple user; he owns an iPad, along with the 28 million other iPad users.
Tuesday is the US’s deadline to escape defaulting on payments to investors in Treasury bonds, recipients of Social Security pension checks, people dependent on military veterans’ benefits and businesses that work for the government.
A deal was reached on late Sunday night after heavy debating all weekend long, with the Tuesday default deadline steadily approaching.
If the country defaults on its loans, it could face a downgrade in its triple “A” credit rating. In addition, if enough cuts aren’t identified or if Congress doesn’t act on recommendations, there will be a decrease in federal benefits across the board, including in Medicare.
Democratic and Republican leaders are in meetings Monday to give their final remarks on the debt ceiling deal. Vice President Joe Biden has been meeting with Democratic lawmakers in both the House and Senate in back to back closed door sessions.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor both say that depending on how these meetings go, the vote could come on Monday evening.
While some are relieved, no one is happy with the deal. The NY Times reports Senator Reid remarked that “ people on the right are upset. People on the left are upset. People in the middle are upset.”
The report also says that despite the discontent, Senator Reid believes the deal is a “remarkable agreement which will protect the long-term health of our economy.”
Maybe if Congress puts together a computer even cooler than Apple, they’ll reach an even more remarkable agreement that not only protects the economy, but provides happiness and entertainment for all.
