The U.S. national debt is $38.7 trillion, while Forbes reported in 2025 that there are “902 American billionaires” who are “worth a record $6.8 trillion combined.” This means that their combined wealth is enough to pay off 18% of the national debt. Contrary to the claims of many politicians and media outlets, the main driver of the national debt is rising spending on social programs, not military spending or “tax cuts for the rich.” If politicians confiscated the wealth of billionaires, this would harm everyone because one of the major reasons why poor and middle-income Americans are richer than their counterparts in every other nation of the world is because wealthy Americans invest in enterprises that increase productivity.