The national debt is now at stranglehold

[mspart]

https://www.crfb.org/blogs/interest-costs-just-surpassed-defense-and-medicare

In the first seven months of Fiscal Year (FY) 2024, spending on net interest has reached $514 billion, surpassing spending on both national defense ($498 billion) and Medicare ($465 billion). Overall spending has totaled $3.9 trillion thus far.

They said we would get here and now we have.   Debt is the #1 expenditure int he budget and that is not bringing any of the debt down.   It is only paying the interest.   We cannot keep going like this.

mspart

 

[Lipdrag]

Allowing annual deficits is taxation of the next generation without representation.  Everything can now be called an emergency and, therefore, needs to be financed according to our cowards in Congress.  Soon our progeny will be very upset with their ancestors and with good cause.  We started down this path during the Wilson administration and it is soon going to get to its logical and inevitable conclusion.

Economists warn of "austerity measures will cause recession" but those same ninnies who think "the ability to have a deficit when needed in a particular year of emergency" then applaud policies that think a deficit is mandatory and must be bigger than last year's deficit for "the economy".  The same people who think inflation is OK think a ever growing deficit is OK.

The reckoning will be devastating when it happens.

[Offthemat]

We’ve already added over $2T to the debt this year. 

[ionel]

1 hour ago, Offthemat said:

We’ve already added over $2T to the debt this year. 

I'm sure whoever we owe all this money to will be happy to forgive it just like we do student loans.  If not we can always just say "come and pry it out of our dead cold hands, or out of our grandchildren's dead cold hands." 

[mspart]

Yes, that is what will happen.   if it gets too much we will just not pay it.   That is the long storied history of governments who overextend.   But then no one will give us their money anymore so something needs to be done now.   But it won't.   We are too addicted to free crap the gov gives.   Obviously they don't give it, we pay for it. 

mspart

Edited June 13 by mspart

[Lipdrag]

7 minutes ago, mspart said:

But then no one will give us their money anymore

Guess then we will balance the budget.  Just like people who cannot get a mortgage have to live month to month on cash flow and save for big purchases.  

A mortgage for a house is OK if your monthly income pays down the debt.  Paying for groceries and lattes on your credit card while the balance continues going up and you pay only the minimum is no way to live your life nor to run a country.  We will learn this soon.

[red viking]

The hypocritical wingers constantly complain about the debt when there is a Democrat as President; then suddenly go silent when their guy becomes President. 

They also want to constantly cut taxes, while increasing spending on our fat & bloated military-industrial complex. 

Example of 'winger hypocrisy #49 billion. 

Reality is that we will NEVER get the debt under control unless we BOTH increase taxes AND cut spending. Sudden drastic slashes to welfare would be a disaster. You think we have high crime now?

Edited June 13 by red viking

[Bigbrog]

18 minutes ago, red viking said:

The hypocritical wingers constantly complain about the debt when there is a Democrat as President; then suddenly go silent when their guy becomes President. 

They also want to constantly cut taxes, while increasing spending on our fat & bloated military-industrial complex. 

Example of 'winger hypocrisy #49 billion. 

Reality is that we will NEVER get the debt under control unless we BOTH increase taxes AND cut spending. Sudden drastic slashes to welfare would be a disaster. You think we have high crime now?

And yet you do exactly what you claim the "wingers" do....projection at it's best.

[mspart]

RV-I don't think it would take drastic cuts.   Cut budgets 10% and revenue will catch up in a little while.

2023 expenditures were 6.13  Trillion.    Revenues were 4.44 Trillion.   Deficit was 1.7 Trillion.    We no longer have to spend for Covid.   We shoudn't be spending a dime on illegal immigrants.   There is room to cut budgets.  Budgets can be easily cut by 10%, not cut 10% of the growth for next year, cut 10%.   The only thing that can't be cut is the debt interest payments.   It is well known that the federal goverment is extremely wasteful. 

https://www.hsgac.senate.gov/media/reps/dr-paul-releases-2023-festivus-report-on-government-waste/

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, released his 2023 “Festivus” Report, totaling ~$900,000,000,000 in government waste.Dec 22, 2023

 

If true, if 900B is wasteful, that can be gotten rid of without consequence.   Then 800 Billion has to be cut.   That is just over the 10% originally noted. 

 

mspart

 

[Wrestleknownothing]

2 hours ago, mspart said:

Yes, that is what will happen.   if it gets too much we will just not pay it.   That is the long storied history of governments who overextend.   But then no one will give us their money anymore so something needs to be done now.   But it won't.   We are too addicted to free crap the gov gives.   Obviously they don't give it, we pay for it. 

mspart

That part, strangely, is not true.

Take Argentina for example. They have defaulted on their debt nine times. Most recently, they defaulted in 2014 and then successfully (and hilariously) sold a 100 year bond just three years later in 2017, which they then also defaulted on in 2020.

[mspart]

Let me put it another way, no sane person or country would  buy our bonds if we refused to pay the interest.  What would be the point?

mspart

[uncle bernard]

Won't Trump's tax cuts add to the deficit?

[Wrestleknownothing]

12 minutes ago, mspart said:

Let me put it another way, no sane person or country would  buy our bonds if we refused to pay the interest.  What would be the point?

mspart

It happens more often than you realize. Countries default and markets have short memories, so they are able to return to the market and borrow more money. Of course, the interest rates are high, but not as high as you might think.

[jross]

Trump is not going to lower the deficit.  

[Paul158]

20 minutes ago, jross said:

Trump is not going to lower the deficit.  

Maybe we should outsource congress?

[Offthemat]

25 minutes ago, jross said:

Trump is not going to lower the deficit.  

This is probably incorrect.  While spending may or may not be reduced, it’s quite possible that the deficit will be reduced due to increased economic activity. 

[mspart]

11 minutes ago, Offthemat said:

This is probably incorrect.  While spending may or may not be reduced, it’s quite possible that the deficit will be reduced due to increased economic activity. 

That has always been the mantra.   It hasn't worked so far.   There is a tried and true method here that has been practiced ever since money was developed.   Do spend more than you bring in.   Period.  You can say, we borrow for houses and cars.   And if we can't make the payments such as in 2008, things go south real fast. 

We are a long way from not adding to the debt but we could be adding less and less actual dollars over the short term.   Keep that static.   The interest should stay static as well.   Then we have our expenditures somewhat equal to or less than what is brought in.   It's a trick as old as time.   Don't spend more than you have.   The Federales need to relearn that.

mspart

[mspart]

Editing note.   I was going to put a pic of Ted Nugent's stranglehold, but the system wouldn't let me.   I'll see if a small one will work. 

Nope won't let me.

You can go here if you need that Nugent fix:

https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=cff19ea8ba3a868e&sca_upv=1&q=nugent+stranglehold&udm=2&fbs=AEQNm0Aa4sjWe7Rqy32pFwRj0UkWfbQph1uib-VfD_izZO2Y5sC3UdQE5x8XNnxUO1qJLaRfKvQK6KSkFrWZdGNeSbyP2dr2mnY9u0zJ7SRXxZukdQvpefeYMo5bAgmG4SG-q6yARfmBph5O0LNjhdD2xCeBeDkDFR4SZD_-MHskrc_zbF9gDOGlg8yLsZdsY-IRLnaS01bFfomRkQzZXXysIcQUke8wBw&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiF8tjcw9mGAxUFMzQIHd32AgEQtKgLegQIEBAB&biw=1920&bih=899&dpr=1 

mspart

[Scouts Honor]

taxes aren't the issue. even taking all the money of the 1% might pay off the debt.. but what about after.

spending is the issue.

if you want to know why we are in debt... it's b/c when another country defaults, WE still loan them money.

And we spend a lot on just crap.

for a sample... just follow this twitter acct.

 

[Wrestleknownothing]

4 minutes ago, Scouts Honor said:

taxes aren't the issue. even taking all the money of the 1% might pay off the debt.. but what about after.

spending is the issue.

if you want to know why we are in debt... it's b/c when another country defaults, WE still loan them money.

And we spend a lot on just crap.

for a sample... just follow this twitter acct.

 

How to guarantee no one will read what you post. Make it this long.

[ionel]

4 minutes ago, Wrestleknownothing said:

How to guarantee no one will read what you post. Make it this long.

A quicker way is to post under the name Jimmy Cinnabon but sure ... the above is fly guaranteed to work it just takes longer.

[Scouts Honor]

57 minutes ago, Wrestleknownothing said:

How to guarantee no one will read what you post. Make it this long.

wondering what was long about my post?

[Wrestleknownothing]

1 hour ago, Scouts Honor said:

wondering what was long about my post?

Do you not realize that you posted 100 tweets?

[ionel]

6 minutes ago, Wrestleknownothing said:

Do you not realize that you posted 100 tweets?

I'm amazed you stopped to count, I gave up at ~5.   

[Scouts Honor]

yet, you still stopped to read one where I typed.

hmm