The Trouble with Trillions

 Have you noticed the National Debt increased by over 7 trillion dollars under Trump and now another 2.1 trillion under Biden? As of January, the National Debt was slightly above $30 trillion which means in the last five years or so, the debt has ballooned by roughly 30%. Granted the last three years have been extraordinary due to the global pandemic, but nonetheless, it shouldn't be a wonder that people are asking questions like "Will I be able to retire?", "Will I be able to get out from under student debt?", and "Will be able to afford to take care of a family?"--All reasonable things to ask. As it stands, there are only a few ways this can go. 1) We can allow/encourage immigrants to come to our country to help grow the domestic economy. 2) We can pay higher taxes to pay down the debt. 3) We can have a higher percentage of wealthy individuals and businesses pay a higher percentage in taxes. 4) We can ignore it and treat it as Monopoly money that will never be repaid.

Taking these one at a time. Realistically, our population will have to grow (or at least maintain) over time to accommodate the global diaspora from wars, climate change, reduced child-bearing in the US and so on. However, because of the politics of nationalism versus globalization, how we do this is anybody's guess. Certainly, those displaced by war and internal instability are generally regarded to be more welcomed, but the untenable situation along the southern border can only really resolve itself by either Draconian, undemocratic means, or by increasing the number of immigrants received into the country and helping other countries to create stronger economic development zones near and away from the borders. If we don't, we can look forward to a continued existential threat by those nations whose populations far exceed our own.

The idea of paying higher taxes has worked in socialized countries that also provide benefits far in excess of our own. The ability to provide that level of support to US residents is highly constricted by the wars we've waged, the borrowing/robbing of the Social Security savings account, and the activities of the Federal Reserve. Taxes on the middle class are likely to appear in the form of higher sales taxes and other fees rather than an increase in either state or federal income taxes. One way or the other, revenue will be raised, but not in a progressive way.

The third option is a political football that will be kicked down one side of the field and up the other. Those who Congress depend on for large PAC and other contributions do not like to watch their vast fortunes fall, but may not have the luxury for much longer if there are few options left to lessen the debt. The threat is always that rats may choose to leave a sinking ship.

The last option is not hard to imagine as who holds the debt is the same organization that created the debt. When you consider that as long as the interest is being paid, there will never be demands to call in the loans--and who would call them in anyway? 

As we trepidatiously look toward the future, it is likely to create some heretofore unheard of tensions as we figure out what to do and who will bear the brunt when the piper wishes to be paid, even if that piper is us.