Tag: national debt

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now

While there certainly exists “a time for everything,” now is not the time for…

 

Blame.

Finger pointing.

Any “I-told-you-so’s.”

Declarations of winning.

Accusations of losing.

Arrogance.

Loquacious boasts.

Rhetoric.

Disrespect.

Nor any pats on the back.

 

While many will cast verbal stones at who’s responsible, our government experienced a partial shut down due to one primary bottom line:  our fiscal house is out of order.  We are spending too much money, too fast, with minimally restricted borrowing… AND… we have no specific, measurable plan to pay it back.  As said here amid multiple posts — just like any financial entity, such an approach is unsustainable.

 

Hence, while there exists that time for everything, now is the time for…

 

Courageous leadership.

Courage to tackle the politically unpopular.

Courage to consider specific plans to pay foreign countries back.

Courage to change the federal programs that continue to run at an increased loss.

Courage to address the meaning of “entitlement.”

 

What are the people entitled to?  Who and how shall such be paid for?  Those questions must be asked and answered — and answered free from the rhetoric and disrespect we’ve witnessed these last 3 weeks especially from the legislative and executive branch.

 

Let me add one more idea as to what, also, this is not the time for…

 

Politicians and pundits often pursue policy initiatives based on when they feel they have the strongest “political capital,” meaning they have more leverage and public popularity which could potentially propel into law policy that would otherwise be more challenging to enact.  (FYI:  The Affordable Care Act is an excellent study in political capital utilization.)  If our leaders are going to lead courageously — and not politically — they will pursue what’s most important now; they will not pursue other agenda items first.

 

In the opinion of this semi-humble blogger, what’s most important is getting our federal fiscal house in order.  Now.

 

Respectfully,

AR

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driving the vote

In less than 10 days, this election will be over (… thank God, thank God, thank God…).

 

Shall we say it again?  (… thank God, thank God, thank God…)

 

(Note:  I kind of like to thank God.)

 

As previously stated, the Intramuralist will not be endorsing any candidate(s).  Our goal here is to respectfully and authentically tackle the issues — not to tell you who to vote for.

 

One of the issues that matters most to this semi-humble observer is the economy and our national debt.  Allow me to share only facts — absent all analysis…

 

Current national debt:  approximately $16.2 TRILLION

 

If this amount is divided into so-called “fair shares,” the debt amounts to approximately:

  • $52,000 for every person living in the U.S.
  • $136,000 for every household in the U.S.

 

The federal government continues to spend far more than it takes in.  Taxing the highest income earners at 100% does not significantly alter the accounting.  Hence, we borrow from foreign governments.

 

What does the government spend money on?

 

Observing each decade since 1960, as of 2010, 61% of U.S. expenditures are now allocated for “social spending” — our #1 expenditure and the highest this budget category has been in 5 decades.  Social spending includes income security (Social Security, welfare, etc.), healthcare, education, housing, and recreation.  In 1960, only 23% was spent on social spending.

 

During the first 2 years of Pres. Obama’s term — when he enjoyed a partisan majority in both congressional bodies, U.S. congressmen introduced 176 bills that would have reduced spending — but 2,480 bills that would have raised it.

 

[OPINION ALERT!  (Yes, this is a subjective comment…)  It’s far easier for the elect to spend rather than save.]

 

(… back to the objective…)

 

When Pres. Clinton entered office, the national debt was approximately $4.2 TRILLION.  When he left, the debt was $5.7 TRILLION (compared to contemporary presidents, this was one of the lowest nominal & percent increases; in fact, during Clinton’s last year in office, the national debt actually decreased).

 

When Pres. George W. Bush entered office, the national debt was approximately $5.7 TRILLION; when he left 8 years later, the debt was $10.7 TRILLION.

 

When Pres. Obama entered office, the national debt was approximately $10.7 TRILLION; as stated, after only 4 years, the debt is now $16.2 TRILLION.

 

Knowing that this is an issue that no president (save arguably Bill Clinton) has effectively addressed during his tenure, the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform was established by Pres. Obama.  Out of that commission, the bipartisan Simpson-Bowles Debt Plan was proposed.  The plan — named after co-chairs Alan Simpson and Erskine Bowles, a former Republican senator and Clinton Chief of Staff, respectively — recommended multiple options to reduce our debt.  It has not been enacted.  In fact, over the past 3 years, the federal government has even operated without a budget.  Budgets provide accountability; that is also a fact.

 

The debt continues to soar.  There is no enacted plan to pay it back.  Hence, I return to my previous, subjective comment:  it is far easier to spend rather than save.

 

Is this pattern wise?  Can it be sustained?  If we continue to borrow massively, will our dollar hold value?  And if our dollar loses value, are we capable of even social spending?

 

This impacts the economy.  And yes, this will drive my vote.

 

Respectfully,

AR

 

 

[Utilized sources for this posting:  Congressional Budget Office, U.S. Dept. of the Treasury, U.S. Census Bureau, National Taxpayers Union Foundation, and www.presidentialdebt.org.]

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heavy, heady, hard…

Greetings, friends…

 

Typical Intramuralist pattern is to go from one topic to the next.  We keep current with what’s current, making sure that we’re paying attention to what deserves it — and alas, not paying attention to what does not.

 

In the past 2 weeks, my sober sense believes there have been 2 topics that are too weighty to simply glance over in a few days.  After all, isn’t that what we’re already prone to do?

 

When a topic is too heavy, we tend to say, “Well, that can wait for another day.  It’s too much to think about.  It hurts too much”… or perhaps most common, “I’d prefer not to dwell on that.”  It’s easier to let the truth go.

 

When a topic is too heady, we tend to say, ”Well, that can also wait for another day.  It’s too hard to figure out — above my pay grade.”  We’d also prefer not to dwell on that.  It, too, is easier to let go.

 

Our challenge is that it’s always easier to let go; it’s easier to ignore the truth than to wrestle with it — and deeper still, to acknowledge any individual impact.

 

Frankly, I think that’s one of the reasons so many of us (and perhaps a larger percentage of non-Intramuralist readers) avoid the news; it’s too hard to pay attention to…

 

… it’s hard to turn on the news each night and see the fighting.

 

… it’s hard to witness the millions of persons who go to bed hungry each night.

 

… it’s hard to see the depth of despair, the perils of poverty, the foolishness, salaciousness, selfishness, impurity, and evil that are evident on this planet on a daily basis.

 

It’s hard.

 

And so when the Intramuralist, for example, initiates conversation on the core beliefs of Islam, I understand that’s hard.  Within the Qur’an, there is specific encouragement to fight against those who are unbelievers solely because they do not believe.  I realize that is not convenient nor easy to comprehend — and it would feel far better to believe something else — but that’s not what the Qur’an says; there is a definite distinction in the way Muslims are exhorted to treat believers and unbelievers.

 

That’s hard.  That’s heavy.

 

Perhaps too heady was our conversation 2 weeks ago entitled “16 trillion dollars.”  16 trillion dollars!

 

The outstanding public debt of the United States of America now surpasses $16,000,000,000,000.  In fact, out debt currently increases at a average, nominal rate of approximately $3.88 billion per day.  Another way to assess that massive amount is that with an estimated U.S. population of 313,521,685, each citizen’s share of this debt is $51,225.60.  In other words, your children’s and grandchildren’s share will be far higher if we do not work to pay this back now.

 

But… “I like all the entitlements… I like the free healthcare, contraception, retirement, and individual household candy bar machines!”  (… ok, so I’m kidding about the candy bars… they’d have fruit instead).  Liking the entitlements often prompts us to ignore the reality.  Why?

 

Because the reality is hard.  It’s also heady.

 

In order to be a wise people, we have to be able to wrestle with the truth… no matter what it is… how heavy… and how heady…

 

… also, no matter how it makes us feel.

 

Respectfully,

AR

Posted on

16 trillion dollars

$16,000,000,000,000.

Sixteen trillion dollars.  16 trillion dollars, friends.

 

Let me be clear:  this is not a partisan post.  This post will be factual and objective.  It will also be sobering.  The outstanding public debt of the United States of America is now almost the 14 digit $16,000,000,000,000.

 

Now for those of you who equate any accounting with an obscure foreign language, allow me to first simply explain the difference between our deficit and our debt.  The deficit is the fiscal year difference between how much the government takes in verses how much it spends.  The debt is the accumulation of these deficits.  In other words, to amass a debt of sixteen trillion dollars, the United States government has been spending beyond its means for years.  It is our pattern.  (Warning:  this next sentence will be opinion…)  This pattern of spending beyond our means for years is incredibly foolish.

 

(Now back to facts.)

 

When we objectively ask what has contributed to this massive, almost unfathomable number (and avoid analysis via any partisan filter), we must evaluate the annual deficits under each administration.  In order to compare apples to apples, so-to-speak, the deficit is expressed as a percentage of our country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).  Again for my foreign language avoidant friends, GDP is the total value of all the goods and services produced in a country in a given year.

 

So comparing our past presidents’ deficits (since dollar amounts would be an inaccurate comparison), going back to 1968, U.S. presidents have amassed the following annual deficits as a percentage of GDP:  (the more negative the percentage, the larger the deficit)

 

Richard Nixon -1.6%

Gerald Ford -3.5%

Jimmy Carter -2.4%

Ronald Reagan -4.3%

George H.W. Bush -4.3%

Bill Clinton -0.1%

George W. Bush -3.2%

Barack Obama -8.3%

 

(Source:  Office of Management and Budget)

 

Now each president gives us their justification for why the deficit has to be so large; some presidents like to give us that justification over and over… and over.  For Pres. Bush 43, it was the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.  For Pres. Obama, it is the “worst recession since the Great Depression.”

 

The Intramuralist has 3 concluding opinions:  One, I’m tired of the justifications.  Two, many fairly loud critics should be much more thankful for one William Jefferson Clinton.

 

And three…

 

For the last 3 years, we have not made any progress in lessening the deficit and lowering our debt.  I remember VP Biden’s public address where he said we have to “spend more money to keep from going bankrupt.”  With all due respect to Joe Biden, we have spent more money for far too long, and if we continue this pattern, we will go bankrupt.

 

This is not a partisan question; it is a serious, sobering, nonpartisan question.  Who has a plan to pay down the debt?  Who will do so aggressively?  Who will not get caught in partisan politics and political power plays?  Who will recognize that this is most important?

 

As Condoleezza Rice exhorted last Wednesday night, “When the world looks at us today, they see an American government that cannot live within its means. They see a government that continues to borrow money, mortgaging the future of generations to come. The world knows that when a nation loses control of its finances, it eventually loses control of its destiny. That is not the America that has inspired others to follow our lead.”

 

Amen, Condi.

 

Let me add one more opinion:  if we cannot solve this fiscal crisis, cliff, or whatever any pundit desires to call it — just like any financial entity or household — we will cease to exist.  No entitlement will matter.  No social issue will matter.  If we don’t exist, no issue matters.  Pick your passion…  abortion, gay marriage, gun control, this rhetorical war on women, healthcare, defense spending, social security, you-name-it.  With all due respect — regardless of the position of your passion — none of these will matter if  we don’t get our fiscal house in order first.

 

Respectfully,

AR