Defaults are bad and costly, no denying that. But the USA has defaulted on its debt multiple times in the past. Which exactly qualify as a technical default is hotly debated, but the number is not zero. Example: Is promising gold repayment and then refusing to provide it a default?

However, reporters claiming default has never happened are clueless.

https://thehill.com/opinion/finance/3885293-actually-the-us-can-default-on-its-debt/