The US deficit and what to do about it?

[wellwisher]

The US debt is at a record high, with the interest on the debt costing 15% of the total tax revenue. In terms of the tax payer, who has to live within their means, or go belly up, when you give tax money to the government, you now get a negative 15% rate of return on your taxes, before anything is done. This is a bad investment. There is no other entity in the private sector or public sector that that behaves this way. What is up with that? Nearly all the state governments have balanced budget amendments, so their tax payers are not ripped off the same as in Washington.

One may ask where is this negative rate of return on our tax money going? Loss means gain for someone else. Who is profiting by this deficit spending scam? The Democrats are not willing to compromise on this deficit scam. They want this scam to go on forever. In this budget cycle, corporate welfare for all the green energy industries is part of target, for this negative rate of return. Maybe the Government needs to get out of the private sector kick back industry.

The little dirty secret is corporate welfare offers kick back incentives for politicians. Maybe anyone who got of gets donations from the green energy welfare, needs to give these back; no more quid pro quo with deficit spending. What type of person would willingly invest in such a selfish scams that loses the tax payer money?

How do we put on the brakes and reverse the rip off of the tax payer? Do we refuse to pay taxes, until they assure us something will be done? Do we test all the leaders for competency in financial matters, and fire any boneheads who do not get it? Do we then bring in competent people? Congress has made it point o have agencies do their dirty work; EPA. Maybe fiscal policy can be done by experts, so we can bypass the boneyard rip offs in Congress, who only get to vote on the final agency policy.

Since the deficit is connected to political donations, maybe we can need to start taxing campaign donations since these often come from the latest negative rates of return. Taxing campaign donations also has the secondary affect on allowing the IRS to audit shady behavior since all needs to be claimed.

Maybe we can also put a pause on all pork barrel spending, since this is contrary to needs of term limits. It is where career politicians use tax money, to bride voters, so they can have an advantage and stay in power. If term limits is off the table, we need to take these voter bribes off the table, so the rip off can end and the tax payer can get their money's worth.

Does anyone have other ideas?

 

[Lyndon]

25% of the total amount of the deficit was added in the 4 years of Trump's presidency,

 

[ChristineM]

The debt has been built up over years and for the most part the US citizen has benefited from the loans. Like any long term finance it has to be paid back or default. Defaulters lose credibility and don't get more loans.

 

[Brickjectivity]

Does anyone have other ideas?

Yes, but the train has left the track already. The monetary system has already begun to collapse, so a change in government is likely to follow.

How do we put on the brakes and reverse the rip off of the tax payer?

I think that being a global power is causing most of our problems. No one would have believed 100 years ago that the federal government would demand to know what was in my paychecks. I have to tell them what I make, and they compel my employers to report it, too; and it is in the name of national security.

We have made (to our advantage) the dollar into the global currency, but it is losing its utility. Perhaps we can release control of the globe, soon. The bill must be paid, so we must take away the (federal) government's power to borrow. Instead each state should have to take out its own loans. Can this happen with the USA as a global power? Not easily and perhaps not at all.

 

[We Never Know]

25% of the total amount of the deficit was added in the 4 years of Trump's presidency,

Obama near doubled it.
Start 2009 $11.8 trillion
End 2017 $20.3

But he had eight years in offce

Trump
Start 2017 -$20.3 trillion
End 2021 -$28.1 trillion

But $1.5 to $2+ trillion due to covid stimulas checks, business payouts and extra unemployment.


Neither faired very well. George W. didn't do to good either with his war(s). But one thing to remember... The bigger it gets, the faster it climbs with interests.

 

[PureX]

We can't pay our bills because the rich can bribe their way out of paying taxes, and the poor have no money to pay taxes with. Leaving the shrinking middle class, on their stagnant wages, to pay for it all.

This cannot be corrected until we stop the legalized bribery of our government. And the only way to do that is to unelect every incumbent political candidate regardless of party until we get people in there that will actively fight to stop this corruption. ALL or nation's problem are directly related to this wholesale corruption and cannot be corrected until we put a stop to it. And since every politician in office, now, is a willing participant, they all have to go. When it becomes clear to them that we will not re-elect them if they will not fight for campaign finance reform and an end to the bribery and corruption by corporate conglomerates through lobbying they will finally take action.

Once we put an end to the billionaire class and start making the rich pay their share of taxes again, and raise everyone else's wages there will be plenty of tax money to begin paying down the debt. And once we stop the wholesale bribery of our government, we will be able to begin addressing a hundred other problems, too.

 

[Augustus]

Obama near doubled it.
Start 2009 $11.8 trillion
End 2017 $20.3

But he had eight years in offce

George W. didn't do to good either with his war(s).

AFAIK, most of the debt in this period was due to quantitative easing after the GFC.

But one thing to remember... The bigger it gets, the faster it climbs with interests.

It's also decreasing in real terms due to inflation though. When inflation outstrips the interest rate paid, the debt is reducing in value (although inflation obviously causes other problems)

 

[Subduction Zone]

People are conflating deficit and debt here. Please learn the difference.

Deficit is the amount of debt added each year. The debt is the total amount owed.

Our payments on the deficit are not 15% of tax income annually. That is the debt that we are paying interest on.

 

[Twilight Hue]

We can't pay our bills because the rich can bribe their way out of paying taxes, and the poor have no money to pay taxes with. Leaving the shrinking middle class, on their stagnant wages, to pay for it all.

This cannot be corrected until we stop the legalized bribery of our government. And the only way to do that is to unelect every incumbent political candidate regardless of party until we get people in there that will actively fight to stop this corruption. ALL or nation's problem are directly related to this wholesale corruption and cannot be corrected until we put a stop to it. And since every politician in office, now, is a willing participant, they all have to go. When it becomes clear to them that we will not re-elect them if they will not fight for campaign finance reform and an end to the bribery and corruption by corporate conglomerates through lobbying they will finally take action.

Once we put an end to the billionaire class and start making the rich pay their share of taxes again, and raise everyone else's wages there will be plenty of tax money to begin paying down the debt. And once we stop the wholesale bribery of our government, we will be able to begin addressing a hundred other problems, too.

The most shocking for me was all those fortune 500 companies that payed zero taxes.

Just think. A common typical citizen pays more as an individual, than a group of fortune 500 companies put together!

 

[tytlyf]

The most shocking for me was all those fortune 500 companies that payed zero taxes.

You can't complain when you support Republicans.
Your vote says you support zero taxes for these corporations.
Only 1 party supports corporate taxation.

 

[The Kilted Heathen]

Only one party says that they support it.

 

[tytlyf]

Only one party says that they support it.

You should learn the policy differences between the parties.
Reps support corporate policies
Dems support people policies
It's that simple..

Biden’s corporate tax hike in the Inflation Reduction Act won’t hurt most U.S. companies
Democrats’ Corporate Tax Plan Threatens Higher Bills for Manufacturers

 

[PureX]

The most shocking for me was all those fortune 500 companies that payed zero taxes.

Just think. A common typical citizen pays more as an individual, than a group of fortune 500 companies put together!

They pay bribes instead of taxes. And it costs them far, far less. That's what we have to stop. Bribery in the form of campaign money, advertising, and labor. Bribes in the form of jobs for family members of politicians. Bribes in the form of after political office jobs as lobbyists, corrupting their successors. Bribes in the form of paid "working" vacations. Bribes in the form of market windfalls. Bribes in the form of all kinds of entertainment ... there are almost endless ways the lobbyists can bribe politicians to get special consideration over the regular citizens, on behalf of their rich corporate clients.

 

[Quintessence]

We can't pay our bills because the rich can bribe their way out of paying taxes, and the poor have no money to pay taxes with. Leaving the shrinking middle class, on their stagnant wages, to pay for it all.

This cannot be corrected until we stop the legalized bribery of our government. And the only way to do that is to unelect every incumbent political candidate regardless of party until we get people in there that will actively fight to stop this corruption. ALL or nation's problem are directly related to this wholesale corruption and cannot be corrected until we put a stop to it. And since every politician in office, now, is a willing participant, they all have to go. When it becomes clear to them that we will not re-elect them if they will not fight for campaign finance reform and an end to the bribery and corruption by corporate conglomerates through lobbying they will finally take action.

Once we put an end to the billionaire class and start making the rich pay their share of taxes again, and raise everyone else's wages there will be plenty of tax money to begin paying down the debt. And once we stop the wholesale bribery of our government, we will be able to begin addressing a hundred other problems, too.

"No, no, no, you've got it all wrong. The very first thing we need to do as part of our new jobs is to repeal that silly funding that Biden and his cronies set aside for the IRS!"
--- Your House Republicans

Literally one of the simplest ways to help address the deficit that shouldn't in any way be controversial, but of course it is. Because the Republican party got co-opted by the death party and the party of self-destruction.

 

[sun rise]

The most shocking for me was all those fortune 500 companies that payed zero taxes.

And Buffet pays less in taxes than his secretary.

I'd replace the income tax with a gross receipts tax with zero deductions or gimmicks for absolutely everything. That would apply to individuals (above a certain poverty level) and businesses and be progressive. Replace all tax forms with three lines: 1) total receipts. 2) progressive tax percentage 3) amount due. There would be zero deductions for anything because otherwise we're right back in the current mess.

Of course that would take a revolution since the entire oligarchy would rise up howling that unless they got a special break, life on Earth would end. And their money people would go to work to carve out special exceptions by buying, directly or indirectly, Congresscritters.

 

[pearl]

For anyone dependent on SS better hope the republicans get it done otherwise the payments stop until it is fixed.

 

[F1fan]

Obama near doubled it.
Start 2009 $11.8 trillion
End 2017 $20.3

But he had eight years in offce

Remember, Obama inherited one of the worst recessions in US history, after massive Bush tax cuts for the wealthy in 2001, and then after starting two wars after the 9-11 terrorist attacks. Obama had financial obligations due to the Bush policies.

Trump

Start 2017 -$20.3 trillion
End 2021 -$28.1 trillion

But $1.5 to $2+ trillion due to covid stimulas checks, business payouts and extra unemployment.

The Trump tax cuts occurred during a long term recovery, so why we incurred more debt is inexcusable.

Neither faired very well. George W. didn't do to good either with his war(s). But one thing to remember... The bigger it gets, the faster it climbs with interests.

Right. No doubt the republicans who worked with Trump should have done better accounting and used the strong economy as an opportunity to pay debt off. All that happened is that the rich got richer and the USA incurred more debt. the middle class and poor have only benefitted due to the pandemic and stimulus checks, not due to policies that allow them a bigger slice of the economic pie.

 

[Heyo]

Does anyone have other ideas?

Cut military spending to reasonable size.

 

[Twilight Hue]

You can't complain when you support Republicans.
Your vote says you support zero taxes for these corporations.
Only 1 party supports corporate taxation.

Ever wonder who promoted NAFTA that imv, accelerated the exodus of American corporations overseas for cheaper labor and tax 'immunity'?

 

[The Kilted Heathen]

You should learn the policy differences between the parties.

The policies are certainly different, and Democrats do make efforts to curb corporate overreach. I will give them that much, but nothing ever changes. Democrats either need to start playing as rough as Republicans do, or implement stronger measures in the benefit of their voters to gain more seats.