Do Large National Debts Harm Economies?
…paper found that high levels of national debt are associated with lower economic growth, a result that conservatives have repeatedly cited to argue that governments should stop accumulating debt. This…
Read moreKrugman’s Accounting of the National Debt is Jailworthy
…the debt/GDP ratio, it is still higher than any other period of U.S. history, clocking in at 123% of GDP at the end of 2022: Worse yet, the national debt…
Read moreWhat the $20 Trillion National Debt Means to You
…War II: Unlike the debt from World War II—which rapidly declined after the war ended—the current national debt is escalating. Between 2007 and 2014, the publicly held federal debt (the…
Read moreThe National Debt Is Rising—Not Declining
…refer to the full national debt but only to the debt that is “publicly held.” This is a partial measure of the national debt that excludes money owed to federal…
Read moreBlame for the National Debt
…typically takes three to tango on the national debt: the House, Senate, and President. Nevertheless, Republicans point the growth in national debt under Obama without mentioning that they have controlled…
Read moreCurrent National Debt Situation is the Worst in U.S. History
…that unless Medicare is rationed, the national debt is slated to grow even faster than CBO projects. Additional Reading Debt versus deficit: Obama’s bait and switch Do large national debts…
Read moreEverything You’ve Heard About the Debt Limit is Wrong
…in how their money is spent. The Debt Situation The U.S. national debt has grown by $8.2 trillion since 2020 and is now $31.5 trillion. This is an average debt…
Read moreFederal Fiscal Burden Consumes 93% of America’s Wealth
…of future debt will be Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, Obamacare, and interest on the national debt. Under the weight of these, the publicly held debt…
Read moreDebt Versus Deficit: Obama’s Bait and Switch
…gave that speech, the national debt was $8.3 trillion or 61% of the nation’s economy. The national debt now stands at $16.7 trillion or 101% of GDP. Thus, even after…
Read moreIs the Economy to Blame for Our “Runaway National Debt”?
…inaccuracies it contained,” Ph.D. economist Dean Baker writes: The “runaway national debt” is also a Washington Post invention. The deficits have soared in recent years because of the economic downturn…
Read morePaul Krugman’s Claims About the Dangers of Government Debt
…and pundits think about debt is all wrong, and exaggerates the problem’s size.” His dominant message is that our national debt is not a major problem, and Washington has an…
Read moreDoes the Social Security Trust Fund Really Exist?
…Ryan stated, “Today marks an infamous day in American history. It is the day that the national debt has surpassed the $15 trillion mark.” This $15 trillion debt figure includes…
Read moreFederal Fiscal Shortfall Nears $1 Million Per Household
…to care.” The Future is Here In 2013, CBO ran a long-term projection of the publicly held debt, a partial measure of the national debt often cited by federal agencies…
Read morePoll Reveals Voters Misinformed About Key Issues
…national debt. Over the past five years, the national debt grew by 62%, while the U.S. economy grew by 14%. Correct answer given by 87% of all voters, 70% of…
Read moreHow Hard and Effectively do Americans Work?
…decreased productivity is excessive government debt, and federal debt has recently grown at a faster rate and to higher levels than at any time in U.S. history except World War…
Read moreFederal Government’s 2017 Fiscal Shortfall Is 74% Worse Than Reported Budget Deficit
…these programs and interest on the national debt. It is often impossible to objectively isolate the effects of a single factor (like the national debt) on an economy. However, a…
Read moreNew Treasury Data Shows Federal Shortfall of $670,000 Per U.S. Household
…will be due to these programs and the interest on the national debt. It is often impossible to objectively isolate the effects of a single factor (like the national debt)…
Read moreCan We Prevent a Debt-Driven Economic Collapse Without Reforming Entitlements?
…other critical functions” in order to prevent an “explosive” debt that “swamps the economy.” Bernstein says “it is well within our means” to reduce the national debt by following the…
Read moreFederal Fiscal Shortfall Surges Past $100 Trillion
…care.” The Future is Here In 2013, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) ran a long-term projection of the publicly held debt, which is a partial measure of the national debt…
Read moreKrugman and Obama Mislead on Debts and Deficits
…that could stem the negative consequences of this debt. Additional reading: Blame for the national debt Consequences of the national debt Federal government finances deteriorated by $6.5 trillion in 2012…
Read morePre-Election Poll: Voters Broadly Misinformed About Key Issues
…the national debt? Correct Answer: The national debt. Over the past five years, the national debt grew by 51%, while the U.S. economy grew by 22%. Correct answer given by…
Read morePoll Reveals Voters are Uninformed About Major Issues
…five years, which has grown at a faster rate, the U.S. economy or the national debt? Correct Answer: The national debt. Over the past five years, the national debt grew…
Read moreTreasury Data Reveals Federal Shortfall of $614,000 per U.S. Household
…projections of publicly held debt (a partial measure of national debt). Under current federal policies and their economic effects, the Congressional Budget Office projects that the next generation of Americans…
Read moreTreasury Report: Federal Fiscal Shortfall is $603,000 per Household
…this can be seen in CBO’s projections of publicly held debt (a partial measure of national debt). Under current federal policies and their economic effects, CBO projects that the next…
Read moreObama’s Plan for Tackling the Deficit
…interest on the national debt drop from 12.5% of GDP in 2010 to 9.9% in 2015. This amounts to a 21% decrease among programs that encompass all discretionary spending and…
Read moreCongressional Records Prove Biden’s Student Loan Cancellations Are Illegal
…by a national disaster” “in the case of a national emergency,” the Secretary of Education “can, in fact, defer these payments” The Law The text of the HEROES Act mirrors…
Read moreMaddow’s Tax and Deficit Doubletalk
…that speech, the national debt was $8.3 trillion or 61% of the nation’s economy. The national debt now stands at $17.5 trillion or 102% of the economy. Hence, even after…
Read moreMaximum Facts About the Minimum Wage
…basic needs for food, shelter, clothing, education, and health.” The National Debt & Burden on Taxpayers Progressives claim that raising the minimum wage to $15/hour would reduce dependence on welfare…
Read moreAudit Reveals Federal Finances Are Far Worse Than Publicized Figures
…“current policy” projections of publicly held debt (a partial measure of the national debt). When CBO includes the economic effects of taxes, government spending, and debt, these projections show that…
Read moreThe New York Times Regularly Publishes Falsehoods That Spur Violent Unrest and Civic Dysfunction
…demonize elected officials. conceal the deadly effects of illegal immigration. distort science. rationalize and cloak the killing of pre-birth humans. drive the U.S. deeper into debt. Below is a sampling…
Read moreFederal Government Finances Deteriorated by $6.5 Trillion in 2012
…true shortfall may be considerably worse. Further reading: The Reality of the Federal Government’s Fiscal Hole Consequences of the National Debt Paul Krugman’s claims about the dangers of government debt…
Read moreWarren Buffett’s Fraudulent Tax Claims (Part 2)
…lobbyists from obtaining tax breaks, and (3) what it will take to get the national debt under control. Buffett opened his op-ed by declaring that no negative economic fallout can…
Read moreThe “Inflation Reduction Act” Will Do Almost Nothing That Joe Manchin Says It Will
…estimate for the legislation” until more than a week after Congress passed it. Manchin’s press release claims the law will: “address record inflation by paying down our national debt, lowering…
Read moreFact-Based Poll Reveals Fictions Believed by Voters
…public policy issues. The questions were designed to identify fault lines between perception and reality across the political spectrum. Among the issues addressed are government spending, the national debt, taxes,…
Read moreA Factual Look at Obama’s Presidency
…“food stamps, health benefits, subsidized housing” and “full or partial payments by business for retirement programs”) rose from $54,988 to $56,516. National Debt Between 2009 and 2015 the national debt…
Read moreHappy Holidays, You Owe the Federal Government $195,554
…it contains shows a significant worsening of the federal government’s financial condition during its 2011 fiscal year. Beyond the commonly cited national debt, the report uses corporate-style accounting standards to…
Read moreEconomy Declined as Government Spending Rose
…Medicaid benefits, Social Security benefits, Medicare benefits, foreign aid, and interest on the national debt. This amounts to 47% of all federal, state and local government spending, largely consisting of…
Read moreQuantitative Easing: Who Wins and Who Loses?
…dollars to purchase toxic investments and government debt—technically known as quantitative easing or QE. According to Krugman, criticism of QE is not genuinely rooted in the oft-voiced concern that it…
Read moreDonald Trump and the Media Agree on Middle-Class Income, and They are Both Wrong
…policies that have contributed to these outcomes. This includes but is not limited to increasing the national debt, propagating regulations, and fostering immigration of low-skilled populations into the United States….
Read moreFactCheck Abets False Obama Claim About Romney’s Taxes
…can be found in Just Facts’ research on the national debt. James D. Agresti is the president of Just Facts, a nonprofit institute dedicated to researching and publishing verifiable facts…
Read moreThe Average Cost of Public School Education Is 58% More Than Private School
…Cornman, a statistician with the DOE’s National Center for Education Statistics, per-pupil spending is “the gold standard in school finance.” That’s why a school with only 1,000 students would be…
Read moreRaising Payroll Taxes to Save Social Security Will Cost the Average Worker $73,000
…would need to increase by 32.8% to keep the program solvent, as opposed to 21% if we act now. This same principle applies to our national debt: the longer we…
Read moreTaking Social Security Off-Budget
…obscuring it with Social Security.” This is true, as evidenced by the facts above and detailed in my 2001 essay, “The Impact of Social Security on the National Debt.” Stay…
Read moreThe Impact of Obamacare and Ryancare on Medicare
…be. When all is said and done, Medicare is facing severe financial problems, and the government’s ability to deal with these is hindered by a swelling national debt. The magnitude…
Read moreReporters Distort the Truth About Government Spending
…inflation/deflation. However, for reasons detailed in a Just Facts Radio episode entitled “Fathoming the National Debt,” readers should be aware that this measure inherently favors advocates of higher government spending….
Read more2017: The Year in Facts and Falsehoods
…an average of $50,000 for every household in the United States. This money is distributed as follows: 61% on social programs, like income security, healthcare, and education 14% on debt…
Read moreWhat Portion of the Federal Budget Is Spent on the Military?
…the Kansas City Star claiming that “Congress is cutting Medicare and Social Security to reduce the debt, yet we spend three times as much on national security.” The reality is…
Read moreMyths about School Choice and Betsy DeVos
…of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics, per-pupil spending is “the gold standard in school finance.” Private school choice programs boost per-student funding in public schools, because the public schools…
Read moreSocial Security Trust Fund to Begin Declining in 2014, Not 2021
…through 2020.” This claim has been repeated by the likes of US News & World Report, the National Academy of Social Insurance, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and…
Read moreQuestion of the Day
Although the principle and interest on the national debt are paid with money from U.S. taxpayers, almost all U.S. citizens bear the burden of the national debt. This is because…
Read moreQuestion of the Day
In 2022, the interest on the national debt was $961 billion, or 20% of federal revenues. Even though the national debt is currently a larger portion of the U.S. economy…
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How much is the average official national debt for every household in the United States?…
Read moreQuestion of the Day
What portion of the U.S. national debt is owned by foreign and international entities?…
Read moreQuestion of the Day
Relative to the size of the U.S. economy, is the current national debt larger than any other era of U.S. history?…
Read moreQuestion of the Day
…total debt. In comparison, China owned 2% of the debt, and mutual funds owned 9%. Since 2008, the amount of national debt owned by the Fed has grown by more…
Read moreQuestion of the Day
How much is the average national debt for every person living in the United States?…
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