That's something that just doesn't come up enough. A while ago, Newt Gingrich was using some calculation of how much interest the country would have to pay over the next 60 years to pay for the stimulus package and all the other spending that is going on now.
What was missing was, what happens in 2069 that suddenly makes the debt interest-free? Because there is no plan I know of that suddenly puts the country in a situation where there is a surplus at all, let alone one that will pay off the debt. Maybe he was using the 2-generation time-frame, because a generation used to be 30 years.
But in any event, the interest on the national debt is infinite, unless somebody shows how the debt will be paid off. When you buy a house and get a mortgage, part of the paperwork is a schedule that shows that eventually the amount owed is zero. Where is that?
The debt just keeps growing, fueled mainly by the entitlement programs, which will consume more and more of the budget crowding out everything else including national defense.
Maybe I’m wrong but my sense is it is possible to grow ourselves out of the debt through economic growth; as long as congress does not spend the money coming in that can be used to retire that debt.
Cutting taxes under JFK, Reagan and Bush 43, all stimulated the economy and government receipts, but congress simply kept spending more and more. With 4000 non-profits in growing government DC today, there’s a lot of pressure to spend, spend, spend.
Beck is picking up on the attraction Ross Perot had years ago. Government has to be held accountable and Democrats with too many Republicans are not doing their job.