The U.S. national debt is creeping toward $35 trillion after decades of running deficits. According to a former comptroller general who served under two U.S. presidents, the country’s biggest deficit is in leadership.
“The truth is, the U.S. has fiscal cancer,” David M. Walker said. “You can beat cancer. My wife beat cancer. But first you have to recognize that you’ve got it and you need to take serious steps to deal with it aggressively and continuously.”
The 2024 election may supersede any treatment. The International Monetary Fund notes that fiscal policy is looser in election years and warns that U.S. fiscal policy is posing “significant risks” to the greater world economy. The IMF called 2024 “the Great Election Year” as 88 economies containing more than half of the world population are holding elections this year.
During election years, the IMF said governments tend to expand fiscal policy, which carries distinct risk in a time where inflation is higher than target and deficits are high.
“The bottom line is we’ve got too many politicians that promise something for nothing,” Walker said. “They’re living for today. They promise debt relief, they promise additional spending, they promise tax cuts, and they would fail math. And they’re also failing their stewardship responsibilities to this country and to future generations of Americans.”
Walker served as comptroller general for a decade under Democrat Bill Clinton and Republican George W. Bush. He said the last time the U.S. had a fiscally responsible president was Clinton.
“Things have totally spun out of control since 2003 and both political parties are responsible for it,” Walker told Straight Arrow News.
For the upcoming fiscal year, President Joe Biden has proposed a $7.3 trillion budget that the White House says will cut deficits by about $3 trillion over the next decade. The budget contains tax breaks for families and lower health care costs but would increase taxes on corporations and those making more than $400,000.
Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump is reportedly keen on passing a middle-class tax cut if elected in 2024, in addition to expanding his 2017 tax cuts. According to a report by the National Bureau of Economic Research released in March, Trump’s 2017 tax cuts boosted investment in the U.S. economy but did not pay for itself and instead is adding about $100 billion per year to the growing national debt.
Watch the full interview with David M. Walker above for his prescription for the growing national debt dilemma.