The national debt has more than doubled from $10 trillion to $21 trillion since 2008, and is projected to surpass $37 trillion within the next decade. As part of Peter G. Peterson Foundation’s Solutions Initiative 2019, Manhattan Institute budget expert Brian Riedl discussed these troubling figures and how the U.S. can build a sustainable fiscal future.
The full report contains fiscal sustainability plans created by seven think tanks from across the political and ideological spectrum. In his chapter, Riedl writes: “The greatest long-term threat to economic prosperity is a national debt that threatens to crowd out investment, raise interest rates, and ultimately bury the federal budget in unaffordable interest costs.”
Riedl also recorded a short video:
On June 11, participants gathered to debate their proposals at the Foundation’s 2019 Fiscal Summit: Building America’s Future. Attendees included Speaker Nancy Pelosi, White House Acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney, House Budget Chairman John Yarmuth, Ways and Means Ranking Member Kevin Brady, new CBO Director Phillip Swagel, and other leading policy voices.
Photos: Peter G. Peterson Foundation
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Brian M. Riedl is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute. Follow him on Twitter here.