The candidate who grasps the gravity of this situation and proposes concrete steps to address it will demonstrate the leadership our nation now desperately needs.
During and after this week’s presidential debate, we must look beyond rhetoric and personality to the core issues shaping America’s future. The most pressing is the unsustainable growth of government spending and ballooning national debt, which promises to rob Americans of wealth and living standards in the coming decades. Make no mistake, it’s a genuine crisis demanding immediate attention. Dealing with it responsibly should be the litmus test for presidential leadership.
A recent Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report paints a dire picture. Projected deficits have climbed alarmingly high, far exceeding previous estimates. The federal budget deficit is now projected to reach $1.9 trillion in 2024, about equal to a staggering 6.7 percent of annual gross domestic product (GDP). More troubling still is the exponential growth in government spending compared to projections from just four years ago.
Back in 2020, the CBO projected that federal outlays would reach $7.5 trillion by 2030. The latest report puts that number at $8.5 trillion—an additional $1 trillion in just four years. The projected deficit for 2030 also increased by roughly 25 percent, or $450 billion, in those four years. Meanwhile, projected debt accumulation grew by 20 percent. In 2020, the CBO projected that the federal debt held by the public would by 2030 reach $31.4 trillion. The latest report now puts that at $37.9 trillion. It will, however, grow another $10 trillion by 2034, to $47.8 trillion!
Contrary to what you may have heard, this rapid expansion of government is more than a response to recent crises, though some of it does reflect the oversized response to COVID-19.
