Understanding the National Debt

Understanding the National Debt PDF Author: Carl Lane
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781594162664
Category : BUSINESS & ECONOMICS
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
The staggering United States debt has a direct impact on every American, yet few are aware of where the debt came from and how it affects their lives The United States has a debt problem--we owe more than $18 trillion while our gross domestic product, the value of all goods and services produced in America, is only $17.5 trillion. To pay down the debt, some recommend austerity, cutting federal expenditures. Others suggest increasing taxes, especially on the wealthiest Americans. In Understanding the National Debt: What Every American Needs to Know, economic historian Carl Lane urges that the national debt must be addressed in ways beyond program cuts or tax increase alternatives, but change can only occur when more Americans understand what constitutes our debt and the problems it causes. The gross national debt is composed of two elements: the public debt and "intragovernment holdings." The public debt consists of bonds, bills, and notes purchased by individuals, banks, insurance companies, hedge and retirement funds, foreign governments, and university endowments. Intragovernment holdings refers to money that the U.S. Treasury borrows from other parts of the government, principally Social Security and Medicare. This accounts for approximately a quarter of the gross national debt, but that is money that we owe to ourselves, not another entity. The more the government borrows, the less is available for private sector investment, creating a "squeeze" effect that inhibits economic growth. The most burdensome problem is the interest due each year on the debt. Every dollar spent on interest is a dollar less for other purposes. Those elements of the federal budget which are termed "discretionary" suffer. The mandatory elements of the budget--Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and the interest on the debt--must be provided for, but defense and national security, education, energy, infrastructure repair and development, and other needs wind up with less. By understanding the national debt we have an opportunity to address our real debt challenge--its principal and interest.

Understanding the National Debt

Understanding the National Debt PDF Author: Carl Lane
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781594162664
Category : BUSINESS & ECONOMICS
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Get Book Here

Book Description
The staggering United States debt has a direct impact on every American, yet few are aware of where the debt came from and how it affects their lives The United States has a debt problem--we owe more than $18 trillion while our gross domestic product, the value of all goods and services produced in America, is only $17.5 trillion. To pay down the debt, some recommend austerity, cutting federal expenditures. Others suggest increasing taxes, especially on the wealthiest Americans. In Understanding the National Debt: What Every American Needs to Know, economic historian Carl Lane urges that the national debt must be addressed in ways beyond program cuts or tax increase alternatives, but change can only occur when more Americans understand what constitutes our debt and the problems it causes. The gross national debt is composed of two elements: the public debt and "intragovernment holdings." The public debt consists of bonds, bills, and notes purchased by individuals, banks, insurance companies, hedge and retirement funds, foreign governments, and university endowments. Intragovernment holdings refers to money that the U.S. Treasury borrows from other parts of the government, principally Social Security and Medicare. This accounts for approximately a quarter of the gross national debt, but that is money that we owe to ourselves, not another entity. The more the government borrows, the less is available for private sector investment, creating a "squeeze" effect that inhibits economic growth. The most burdensome problem is the interest due each year on the debt. Every dollar spent on interest is a dollar less for other purposes. Those elements of the federal budget which are termed "discretionary" suffer. The mandatory elements of the budget--Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and the interest on the debt--must be provided for, but defense and national security, education, energy, infrastructure repair and development, and other needs wind up with less. By understanding the national debt we have an opportunity to address our real debt challenge--its principal and interest.

White House Burning

White House Burning PDF Author: Simon Johnson
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 0307947645
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 386

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Book Description
From the authors of the national bestseller 13 Bankers, a chilling account of America’s unprecedented debt crisis: how it came to pass, why it threatens to topple the nation as a superpower, and what needs to be done about it. With bracing clarity, White House Burning explains why the national debt matters to your everyday life. Simon Johnson and James Kwak describe how the government has been able to pay off its debt in the past, even after the massive deficits incurred as a result of World War II, and analyze why this is near-impossible today. They closely examine, among other factors, macroeconomic shifts of the 1970s, Reaganism and the rise of conservatism, and demographic changes that led to the growth of major—and extremely popular—social insurance programs. What is unquestionably clear is how recent financial turmoil exacerbated the debt crisis while creating a political climate in which it is even more difficult to solve.

The Deficit Myth

The Deficit Myth PDF Author: Stephanie Kelton
Publisher: PublicAffairs
ISBN: 1541736206
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 311

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Book Description
A New York Times Bestseller The leading thinker and most visible public advocate of modern monetary theory -- the freshest and most important idea about economics in decades -- delivers a radically different, bold, new understanding for how to build a just and prosperous society. Stephanie Kelton's brilliant exploration of modern monetary theory (MMT) dramatically changes our understanding of how we can best deal with crucial issues ranging from poverty and inequality to creating jobs, expanding health care coverage, climate change, and building resilient infrastructure. Any ambitious proposal, however, inevitably runs into the buzz saw of how to find the money to pay for it, rooted in myths about deficits that are hobbling us as a country. Kelton busts through the myths that prevent us from taking action: that the federal government should budget like a household, that deficits will harm the next generation, crowd out private investment, and undermine long-term growth, and that entitlements are propelling us toward a grave fiscal crisis. MMT, as Kelton shows, shifts the terrain from narrow budgetary questions to one of broader economic and social benefits. With its important new ways of understanding money, taxes, and the critical role of deficit spending, MMT redefines how to responsibly use our resources so that we can maximize our potential as a society. MMT gives us the power to imagine a new politics and a new economy and move from a narrative of scarcity to one of opportunity.

Pragmatic Capitalism

Pragmatic Capitalism PDF Author: Cullen Roche
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN: 1137279311
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 252

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Book Description
An insightful and original look at why understanding macroeconomics is essential for all investors

Red Ink

Red Ink PDF Author: David Wessel
Publisher: Crown Pub
ISBN: 0770436145
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 210

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Book Description
Presents a narrative analysis of the federal budget that reveals how funds were actually spent in 2011, evaluating the roles of such contributors as Jacob Lew, Douglas Elmendorf, and Pete Peterson.

The Political Economy of Public Debt

The Political Economy of Public Debt PDF Author: Richard M. Salsman
Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing
ISBN: 1785363387
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 337

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Book Description
How have the most influential political economists of the past three centuries theorized about sovereign borrowing and shaped its now widespread use? That important question receives a comprehensive answer in this original work, featuring careful textual analysis and illuminating exhibits of public debt empirics since 1700. Beyond its value as a definitive, authoritative history of thought on public debt, this book rehabilitates and reintroduces a realist perspective into a contemporary debate now heavily dominated by pessimists and optimists alike.

The $13 Trillion Question

The $13 Trillion Question PDF Author: David Wessel
Publisher: Brookings Institution Press
ISBN: 0815727062
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 178

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Book Description
The underexamined art and science of managing the federal government's huge debt. Everyone talks about the size of the U.S. national debt, now at $13 trillion and climbing, but few talk about how the U.S. Treasury does the borrowing—even though it is one of the world's largest borrowers. Everyone from bond traders to the home-buying public is affected by the Treasury's decisions about whether to borrow short or long term and what types of bonds to sell to investors. What is the best way for the Treasury to finance the government's huge debt? Harvard's Robin Greenwood, Sam Hanson, Joshua Rudolph, and Larry Summers argue that the Treasury could save taxpayers money and help the economy by borrowing more short term and less long term. They also argue that the Treasury and the Federal Reserve made a huge mistake in recent years by rowing in opposite directions: while the Fed was buying long-term bonds to push investors into other assets, the Treasury was doing the opposite—selling investors more long-term bonds. This book includes responses from a variety of public and private sector experts on how the Treasury does its borrowing, some of whom have criticized the way the Treasury has been managing its borrowing.

Understanding Similarities & Differences Between Accrual & Cash Deficits

Understanding Similarities & Differences Between Accrual & Cash Deficits PDF Author: United States. Government Accountability Office
Publisher: DIANE Publishing
ISBN: 9781422311691
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 46

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Book Description


Debt Bomb

Debt Bomb PDF Author: Michael Ginsberg
Publisher: BQB Publishing
ISBN: 1952782090
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 368

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Book Description
"A deftly crafted thriller that kept me turning pages---through politics, money, and murder---to the ending I didn't see coming." - Chris DeRose, New York Times Bestselling Author of The Fighting Bunch. A political thriller, tied in to real events, about an apocalyptic threat to America that is ticking remorselessly in the background while Americans continue their daily routines, oblivious to the danger. For years, China's spy agency has been watching the United States rack up trillions of dollars in debt, waiting for the right moment to weaponize that debt to collapse the American government and install a Communist puppet regime. At the same time, suburban accountant Andrea Gartner has been an outspoken critic of the debt as a leader in the South Carolina state Republican Party. When the United States elects President Earl Murray, he brings Andrea into his government as budget director to solve America's debt problem. But before the nameplate is even installed on her office door, China strikes, engineering an American debt crisis that brings the country to the brink of collapse. Government operations come to a screeching halt. With the American hegemon on its knees, China violently seizes the opportunity to fulfill its territorial ambitions in Taiwan and the South China Sea. Thrust into the rapacious, cutthroat world of American politics and surrounded by crises on all sides, Andrea begins a desperate effort to save the United States. Arrayed against her are cynical politicians and belligerent military brass, some of whom just might be secret Chinese agents. Will Andrea be able to keep the United States alive to fight another day? Or will America drown in a sea of red ink at the hands of the Chinese and see its democratic government replaced by a Chinese Communist puppet regime? American life as we know it is about to be obliterated by a debt bomb. And the only person who can save the country is a suburban accountant.

Global Waves of Debt

Global Waves of Debt PDF Author: M. Ayhan Kose
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 1464815453
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 403

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Book Description
The global economy has experienced four waves of rapid debt accumulation over the past 50 years. The first three debt waves ended with financial crises in many emerging market and developing economies. During the current wave, which started in 2010, the increase in debt in these economies has already been larger, faster, and broader-based than in the previous three waves. Current low interest rates mitigate some of the risks associated with high debt. However, emerging market and developing economies are also confronted by weak growth prospects, mounting vulnerabilities, and elevated global risks. A menu of policy options is available to reduce the likelihood that the current debt wave will end in crisis and, if crises do take place, will alleviate their impact.