Posted on 03/14/2012 6:46:17 PM PDT by Bobbisox
Two very large numbers are essential in the American public debate today. They are so big that they are almost inconceivable.
The first number is 15.5 trillion. Thats a 14 digit number.
$15.5 trillion is the size of the U.S. national debtmore or less the amount the federal government owes individuals, organizations, and governments that have loaned money to it. To put this number in a more human perspective, its roughly $50,000 for every person in the United States.
$50,000 is more than the U.S. median income, about $44,000. That means if a normal, working American worked an entire year and devoted his or her entire income to nothing other than paying off their share of the national debt, they still wouldnt pay off the full amount.
Todays national debt is so large that it is very difficult to imagine a solution. President Obama has added $4 trillion during his administration alone. That means the Obama administration in three years has added nearly 40 percent to the national debt.
The problem of balancing the budget and reducing the national debt didnt always seem so insurmountable. When I was Speaker, we balanced the budget for four straight years, resulting in real surpluses and paying down the national debt by $400 billion. When I left the speakership in 1999 the entire public debt was scheduled to be paid off by this year, 2012....
(Excerpt) Read more at humanevents.com ...
Then, I watched Sarah Palin in The Undefeated for the 10th time, and I am back in the fight!
Me too. I’m a Newt delegate to the State Convention in Colorado (unbound). Watching the returns roll in, I was getting discouraged and thinking it might be time to flirt with other options.....and then Newt stepped to the podium.
Men with that level of ability to articulate an argument come once in a generation. When I watch Rick or Mitt, I often agree with what they are saying, but they are like intellectual little leaguers compared to Newt, sputtering and stammering as they push half-formed ideas out into the air. Good ideas perhaps, but poorly supported, and awkwardly formed. Not calculated to cut through the clutter and clouds of journalistic disinformation.
Notice that it’s Newt that Obama and his Carney feel compelled to respond to. Not Mitt, Not Rick. It’s Newt. He knows how to fashion and drive home the argument.
So for now, I’m sticking with the Articulate One.
Here in North AL . . . I donated again to Newt today! I’m not giving up either.
Go Newt!!!!
Thanks Bobbisox.
Well, Newt appears to be the best candidate in the running, IMO, but the debt should be paid by way of many cuts against spending—especially federal funding to local governments for anti-family programs, regulations, government education, etc.
During a debate Ron Paul said that Newt paid down the debt or balanced the budget by taking money from the social security money. Nobody knows if this is true or not. I know Ron Paul is a kook, but he is very keen on financial stuff.
Glad your sticking with Newt.
See Boys and Girls. He is UNBOUND he can change his mind if HE wants to.
Stay the Course Newt. Newt has said he was going for the UNBOUND delegates nomatter whom they were pledged for.
Newt’s the only one that inspires me to have an interest in the political process. So I’m sticking with him so long as he’s in. The others just equal 4 more years of BHO.
I heard Newt talk about this a little bit on Greta’s show tonight. Here, he goes into a lot more detail. Worth the read!
This is inaccurate. We have deficit spent every year for the last 50 years ...
The National Debt will not be paid off. PERIOD.
There has never been a year where we have run a budget surplus bigger than 300 billion. If we had one bigger than that, lets say 500 billion and ran a 500 billion dollar surplus for 20 CONSECUTIVE YEARS we still wouldn’t pay it off.. .... it’d have to be 30 Consecutive years of 500 billion dollar surplus’.
Of course of they increase inflation by ten fold....then yeah. But that would destroy the USA so that won’t happen ....right?
http://www.webofdebt.com.
Again the problem is that under present rules the govt. has no way to increase the nation's money supply OTHER than deficit spending.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.