One Nation Under A Mountain of Debt

Some say that Iraq is the most important topic for the upcoming election. Some say immigration and others say the economy. Some say healthcare while others say education. The most important topic for this election is really all of these and none of these. The most important topic should be fiscal policy because it encompasses all of these topics and should be at the forefront of all the debates. Fiscal policy will dictate whether we can afford to have a military presence in the world. Fiscal policy will dictate if we can afford Medicare and Medicaid. Fiscal policy will determine where our economy goes.

If you are at all following fiscal policy you know that the national debt is around $9.1 trillion (Bush has increased the national debt by an on the books amount of $3.4 trillion). If you had no idea what the national debt is you should now be outraged at the utter irresponsibility of our federal government. Now the other shoe drops – the real debt is much, much more. What the morons running this country do not want you to know is that there are no trust funds for Medicare and Social Security – only a bunch of worthless IOUs in a “lock box”. The accountants for the federal government make the accountants at Enron and Worldcom blush. The sheer scope of the fraud that is occurring in Washington, D.C. when it comes to the keeping of our nation’s books is absolutely mind boggling. The real debt is more than $50 trillion according to David Walker, Comptroller General of the United States of America.

While the presidential candidates are busy debating who the real candidate for change is, Mr. Walker is coming out and talking about the important issues. While Senator Hillary Clinton and Senator Barack Obama were stumping in some diner in New Hampshire Mr. Walker was talking to CBS and raising the alarm. While former Governor Romney was schmoozing at an Iowa farm Mr. Walker was talking to USA Today. While Mike Huckabee was trying not to evolve Mr. Walker was. While Senator John McCain was developing yet another miserable failure of a bill, David Walker submitted testimony to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Budget. While former Senator John Edwards was getting a hair cut for $400 and giving a speech about two America’s the Washington Post said the following:

"The largest employer in the world announced on Dec. 15 that it lost about $450 billion in fiscal 2006. Its auditor found that its financial statements were unreliable and that its controls were inadequate for the 10th straight year. On top of that, the entity's total liabilities and unfunded commitments rose to about $50 trillion, up from $20 trillion in just six years.

If this announcement related to a private company, the news would have been on the front page of major newspapers. Unfortunately, such was not the case -- even though the entity is the U.S. government."

If you think what I am talking about is unimportant take a look at the federal budget and where our money goes. It shows a troubling trend. Medicare/Medicaid, interest on Debt, defense, and Social Security make up the majority of the money the United States spends every year.

Instead of talking about the one issue that dictates all the others, we are stuck with speeches filled with senseless rhetoric only meant to appeal those with a low IQ. The budget determines what we can do and what we can’t do. Simplistic statements like taxing the rich by bigger simpletons are not enough to solve this problem. Wake up America. It is time to demand real change where our fiscal policy is concerned. If we don’t address fiscal policy you won’t get healthcare and you won’t get defense. You won’t get anything at all but a bill saying Due in 30 days.

Photo by KCThinker, Roman ruins, Vaison la Romaine, France.