Posted on 04/03/2016 11:22:01 AM PDT by Steelfish
Fact Checker Trump’s Nonsensical Claim He Can Eliminate $19 Trillion In Debt In Eight Years
Donald Trump, in an interview with Bob Woodward and Robert Costa In a revealing interview, Trump predicts a ‘massive recession’ but intends to eliminate the national debt in 8 years
By Glenn Kessler April 2
The Washington Post's Bob Woodward and Robert Costa sat down with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. Here's how the interview went. Donald Trump: “We’ve got to get rid of the $19 trillion in debt.”
Bob Woodward: “How long would that take?”
Trump: “I think I could do it fairly quickly, because of the fact the numbers…”
Woodward: “What’s fairly quickly?”
Trump: “Well, I would say over a period of eight years. And I’ll tell you why.”
Woodward: “Would you ever be open to tax increases as part of that, to solve the problem?”
Trump: “I don’t think I’ll need to. The power is trade. Our deals are so bad.”
Woodward: “That would be $2 trillion a year.”
Trump: “No, but I’m renegotiating all of our deals, Bob. The big trade deals that we’re doing so badly on. With China, $505 billion this year in trade. We’re losing with everybody.”
— exchange during a Washington Post interview, March 31, 2016
Of all the wildly impossible assertions made by Donald Trump, the notion that he could eliminate the nation’s $19 trillion in debt in just eight years ranks near the top. Trump suggests he can manage this feat simply by cutting better trade deals.
If only it were that easy. As we have noted repeatedly, eliminating a trade deficit does not mean the money ends up in government coffers. (Morever, Trump is wrong to say the trade deficit with China is $505 billion; it’s $366 billion, according to the Census..... (READ ON)
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
I guess there aren’t any American companies. Just saying. I have no problem with commercial trade or Canadian companies working here. My bro-in-law is Canadian. Canadians fought in Afghanistan. Just being honest.
Because it’s deducted from my paycheck before it is given to me, that or they send me a nice bill at the end of the year.
As a tax.
Thanks for your civil, serious response. It is a little light on details but then Trump seems always unspecific about the plans. Still, thanks for a civil response.
Two numbers for the year 2015, the last full year of federal budgeting I could quickly find. The federal deficit was $18 trillion. Gross federal revenue was $3.2 trillion.
Trump says in 8 years he will eliminate the deficit.
That would be like a person making $40,000 per year paying off a $225,000 mortgage in 8 years. That is not plausible - unless the person has large assets he can unload.
Of course, the federal government, as Trump says, does have huge assets. One aircraft carrier might fetch six billion dollars on the open market but I assume Trump would not sell one to the likely high bidder, Red China.
What about the federal governments huge land and energy resources? There's potential there but the sales would need Congressional approval.
I'm doubtful Congress, or the American public, would stand for Alaska and its energy resources being purchased on the open market by Russia, China, or Saudi Arabia.
Trump could limit bids to federal land and energy to just American companies he trusts and likes but if taken off the international market the assets would generate lower bids and less revenue. In other words, a fire sale to the Goldman Sachs and others like them.
I'm sympathetic to cutting the federal government down to size. In fact, that is the only thing I can imagine reversing our death spiral. But Trump talking about it will not do it; especially when he talks just as often about expanding the federal government's responsibilities to include paying for all health care and "great communities."
I conclude Trump has no workable plan to reduce the role or expense of the federal government.
“The federal deficit was $18 trillion.”
Self correction. The national debt was $18 trillion. National debt. Just wasn’t thinking.
Donald Trump is a bright guy and will not waste time pretending to cut spending while running the US printing presses around the clock to prop up all the deficit spending now going by the current Obama administration and their Allies in the Republican congress.
“Because it’s deducted from my paycheck before it is given to me, that or they send me a nice bill at the end of the year.
As a tax.”
So, it is being paid (er rather extorted)!
Sounds good.
and then disolve the Fed and print new dollars from the treasury.
Why not just keep printing with the Fed?
Part of it is, the money comes in through payroll extortion is added to borrowed federal debt money and sent back out to cover current recipients.
Chauncey Gardner is speaking fantasy again.
And yes; I read his other statement on this. He wants to sell off assets of the US govt to pay off the debt.
Not ONCE do I hear him speak of the real issue; too much spending; and the fact that the government is spending money that it isn’t Constitutionally authorized to spend.
https://www.tedcruz.org/five-for-freedom-summary/
No, they do not add up to eliminating the national debt. It took us decades to get there, and it will take decades to unwind. Decades that will cause some pain to -everyone-.
I'd rather have specifics that solve part of the problem. I ignore horse pucky about "fraud and waste" which dodges the problems by saying "someone else will get their check cut, not you".
https://www.tedcruz.org/five-for-freedom-summary/
No, they do not add up to eliminating the national debt. It took us decades to get there, and it will take decades to unwind. Decades that will cause some pain to -everyone-.
I'd rather have specifics that solve part of the problem. I ignore horse pucky about "fraud and waste" which dodges the problems by saying "someone else will get their check cut, not you".
“A billion here and a billion there and pretty soon we are talking real money.”
“And oh BTW stopping the illegals at the border actually costs lots of money.”
—
Beg to differ, if you factor the cost in our criminal justice system and our illegals on the freebee programs. And think about the cost of the illegal aliens related to drug running in the US, that one is incredible.
Trump has never said that he wants Government funded healthcare for all, although that has been misreported frequently. Trump’s healthcare plan is private insurance with competition across State lines.
Veterans would be able to use the same doctors and hospitals as everyone else, not just VA facilities. Trump said that he supports a saftey net so that the indigent and those with preexisting conditions are not left without any care.
As a physician I know that America used to take care of the indigent with charity care by physicians and hospitals, all picking up part of the care. Hillary Clinton destroyed the charity system by polarizing insurers and hospitals in her attempt to create a Government Healthcare system. Within 5 years all the city/charity hospitals began to close creating a desert of care for the indigent and those with preexisting conditions.
Charity care is now provided much less well and more expensively by Medicaid. Donald Trump has said that those patients will continue to be cared for but more efficiently. That is what people are falsely calling single payer health care. Trump has contributed to the confusion by everyone will have Health Care. Trump means that no one is left to die on the street. They aren’t now and he is reassuring that they will not be after Obama care is dismantled. He has categorically stated that the vast majority will have private healthcare that they direct. He is in favor of HSA. There will be a second system for the indigent.
https://www.donaldjtrump.com/positions/healthcare-reform
http://www.ontheissues.org/2016/Donald_Trump_Health_Care.htm
“Trump has contributed to the confusion by everyone will have Health Care.”
And by saying the government will pay for it.
In reality, I have no idea what Trump intends. Neither do you. Neither does Trump. And that is a problem.
“Trump has contributed to the confusion by everyone will have Health Care.”
And by saying the government will pay for it.
In reality, I have no idea what Trump intends. Neither do you. Neither does Trump. And that is a problem.
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