Uncontrolled debt is a danger to national security

The U.S. government debt continues to grow and has increased by $392.75 billion in the past 30 days. In the last week alone, it rose by $66.41 billion. According to the Cato Institute, the gigantic debt burden has now become a problem for national security.

Interest is paid on debts, and that is a significant part of the problem for the United States of America. As you can see in the graph above, the annual interest payments of the United States on those debts are rapidly rising to the amount of 1 trillion dollars.

For comparison, that is approximately equal to the entire Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the Netherlands. America is spending that amount on interest alone.

As a result, the country is losing an increasingly larger portion of its budget to finance its debts. According to the Cato Institute, reforms are needed in the short term.

“High and rising U.S. government debt leads to a decline in private investments, lower incomes, and a significant risk of a sudden fiscal crisis,” says the Cato Institute. We speak of a fiscal crisis when the government fails to balance its finances.

In principle, it is already dangerous for a country if the economy is not doing well and they can no longer pay the bills. In that respect, it would already make sense for the Cato Institute to be concerned about national security in the United States, but there is more.

“Defending the nation is a core responsibility for the federal government. To maximize the security and well-being of Americans, the government must be prudent in its strategy and budget. A severe fiscal crisis would undermine America’s economic foundation of strength and limit the U.S. in its defense,” says the Cato Institute.

Furthermore, according to Cato, it would be a good idea to establish a debt commission, which creates reform plans and whose recommendations are automatically incorporated into the law once they are approved by the President of the United States.