Posted on 08/21/2026 8:09:52 AM PDT by Miami Rebel
Vice President Vance said Thursday night that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has a “very discreet plan” to shrink the nation’s debt.
“He [Bessent] has had a very discreet plan, of course, supported by the president of the United States, to get the United States to a point where our economy is growing faster than our debt,” Vance said on Newsmax’s “Carl Higbie Frontline.”
“And if you look, we are on track. So, even though the debt is too high, even though we inherited this debt bomb from the Biden administration, we actually do have a plan to get the economy growing faster than the debt and that’s the most important thing,” the vice president added.
On Thursday, Bessent claimed the U.S. can “grow” its way out of the national debt, which hit $40 trillion on Wednesday.
“There’s nothing magic about the $40 trillion number, and we can grow our way out of that,” Bessent told “Squawk on the Street” co-host Sara Eisen on CNBC.
“But what we do want to signal is I think there’s been a lot of misinformation in terms of what’s going on with the deficit, what’s going on with the deficit to GDP,” he added.
Bessent said that a temporary aspect of the debt comes from tariff refunds ordered by the Supreme Court in a February ruling against emergency tariffs from President Trump.
The Treasury Department head said U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer is going to implement “the same level of tariffs,” and that he expects the “2026 tariff income is going to be roughly what it was in ’25.”
Lawmakers have recently raised concerns over the national debt, decrying Congress’s inability to sufficiently deal with an issue that has become harder to ignore.
The GOP has commonly cited federal spending and entitlement programs as main causes behind the debt, with Democrats emphasizing the need for increased taxation of wealthy Americans and corporations as well as spending reforms.
“a plan to get the economy growing faster”
FRAUD Waste Abuse is a big drag on the economy. Vance is in charge of fighting FWA. The fight needs to be much more aggressive. There are easy targets in the SWAMP that are not only fraudsters themselves...but the enabler of much fraud by others.
Deloitte is the best example. Deloitte is the #1 Fraud because it is the #1 fraud in most states, all the big states, both Red and Blue and because it is the FRAUD for ALL WELFARE programs: Medicaid, CHIP, SNAP, WIC, TANF, Sec8, LIHEAP, etc.
The Deloitte role as the #1 abuser of H1b is also interesting. H1b are assigned to facilitate Welfare fraud because they are in no position to become whistleblowers.
“Debt grew $7.5 trillion under Biden.”
Actually the national debt grew $8.45 trillion during the four year Biden term which immediately preceded the second Trump term.
During the first Obama term, the national debt grew by $5.8 trillion. During the second Obama term, which immediately preceded the first trump term, the national debt grew by $3.5 trillion. So the trend was down during the Obama second term preceding Trump’s first term.
Debt grew from $19.95 trillion to $27.75 trillion during the first Trump administration. Total increase in the national debt during the first Trump administration $7.8 trillion. So during Trump’s first term he added over twice the amount his predecessor had added during the preceding term.
Currently the federal deficit for 2026 is projected to be $2.1 trillion, up from $1.7 trillion in 2025. The year over year increase from 2025 to 2026 is 23.5%.
A 23.5% increase in the national debt from year 1 to year 2 of the Trump administration is not something to be proud of.
1- 'Eliminate' 50% of Federal Departments and Agencies.
2- 'End' all grants and support to NGOs.
3- Create a DOGE Department and impose DOGE on steroids against all Federal Departments and Agencies. p>4- Pass Balanced Budget Amendment.
5 - Deport all illegals.
6- End all worker visas and deport all worker visa holders.
What I've recommend are common sense solutions - unfortunately, a feckless Congress and special interests paint commonsense ideas as radical ideas.
We are in trouble and short of a miracle - we will continue to be ruled by feckless, corrupt power hungry elites. Today we are a nation of the government, by the government, for the government.
There are only two ways to fix the debt outgrow it or default. Congress will never stop spending until they run out of our money. Glad we are trying the first one first. We should direct the countries who want a tariff refund to the ignorant twerps on the Supreme Court. They can pay for their stupid antics.
“...better start buying gold...”
With what? The dollar is based upon the gold standard so if you buy it at a loss in the trade back, you add to the debt to cover the losses. And every dollar that is printed and not retired for, cuts that dollar in half and always forces inflation. It’s the people spending it, not the dollar tht is in trouble.
Don’t try to pay it off, work it off while new draws upon the dollar are not put in place. DOGE was the first in line to identify and recommend the correcting of the overspending and wasting of the dollar we currently use at a deflated level. The problem with the dollar right now before action is being taken is it is expected to do more than it can and the overspending of our government by borrowing from one fund to cover the minimums of another. Get spending into moderation. Our government was never designed by the founders to be a catch all for every little need. It was there for the select things assigned like wars and diplomacy with foreign countries. There only entries into domestic issues were:
The Supreme Court didn’t formally established the modern, broad interpretation of the Spending Clause allowing for national social welfare legislation until 1936 and 1937. Seems we were able to successfully operate for almost 150 years without congress playing with social programs that are costing the taxpayer trillions every year. Taek away wasted programs, and you take away spending. Cutting spending gives the dollar more bang for it’s buck.
wy69
Get ready to take a financial hair cut. They plan on confiscating 10% of bank accounts and stocks. This will send the market into a crash.
Print enough money and pay off the debt. Simple and discreet. Of course the dollar might end up worthless.... better start buying gold....
None will escape, but some harbors will be safer.
The principle objective has always been...no nukes...
Bessent, or even Trump for that matter, isn’t the one that has lost control of US finances. And there is nothing magical or mysterious about the US Treasury, along with big tech, borrowing far more than markets want to lend without demanding higher interest rates.
I think by ‘shrink’ he is referring to interest payments not being half the yearly budget.
What will the people who receive principle, spend their money on?
What do the people who receive interest, spend their money on.
Gets complicated fast, doesn’t it??
Just print more money?.......................
The last chanced to save the republic from the debt bomb was with Perot in 92. He ran on debt and free trade, the very same problems dominating today. Nothing fixed. These current parties hate America.
Many believe all debt is bad but in the finance world that is not true. Sometimes debt cna be used to make investments that rerturn higher than the cost of the debt. Also, using leverage can create a higher return on the marginal portion of investment.
So zero debt should not be the goal, zero debt would mean we are taking taxes or wealth from the wealthy who are hopefully are using that wealth to create new wealth.
1994 was mentioned on this thread and then the GDP was about 7 trillion and today we are probably at 32 trillion. So the goal should be a target of debt reduction that allows economy to grow and at some point that amount should not be zero.
The federal government needs to cut expenses.
For health care, bring on market force:
1. Break most hospitals into two highly competitive entities.
2. Convert other hospitals into real estate leasing entities with competing surgical suites and nursing wings.
3. Separate out drug coverage so hospital systems can run care coverage systems and cut out insurance company overhead and meddlers.
4. Create interstate drug plans that don’t have to pay what the drugmaker wants for every drug. To qualify for exchange listing and federal subsidies, they would have to most (~80% or more) in all important types (large volume recombinant, small volume recombinant, breakthroughs under patent, etc.). Group and exchange plans to offer time-limited vouchers at plan set amounts for out-of-formulary drugs. Voucher plans would have variable premiums. Plans without minimums (or vouchers) could be vended directly to individuals and families.
5. These plans would be all the doctors (and AI) prescribe for formulary drugs with co-pays equal to manufacturing cost
6. Reform medical education, breaking down medicine and dentistry into simpler chunks and start it in the first year of college
7. Replace most primary care doctoring with AI.
(Insurers would pay human doctors to confirm AI diagnosis, orders for expensive tests[MRI, genetic], prescribe radiation imaging[CT, PET, X-ray]/treatment, and voucher/government co-pay drugs. Other human doctor care would be private pay.)
8. Radioisotope-related care would be at international airport centers
For housing, phase out federal funding. Most states could create new capital cities every ten years. These would be quality cities with amenities, and affordable housing.
For defense, cut expenses: no new aircraft carriers, cheaper missiles, etc.
“make investments”
More lerning centers!
Some Democrat was talking awhile back of seizing retirement accounts, and replacing them with 30-year government bonds paying 2% or so.
That’s not confiscation, because you’re getting something of equal value in return. Of course that “something” has little value going forward.
I can’t see this happening any time soon. But should radical DSA Democrats ever take control of Congress and the White House, oh yeah.
“make investments”
1040
....
Amount to be lent to taxpayer at 2% above Treasury borrowing costs
What the Brits did was to end indexing of tax brackets to inflation.
Another possibility is to end tax deductions for interest of less than 4%.
People who got 3% (or less) mortgages during Covid (financed by Uncle Sam) got a real sweet deal.
Another possibility is to make the federal corporate tax rate equal to a percentage equal to the federal national debt in trillions less 15.
At $40 trillion, the rate would be 25% (up from 21%).
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