WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) penned an op-ed in The Hill highlighting the need for Congress to address the national debt and put an end to runaway spending moving the American Dream further out of reach for many families.
“Interest payments now consume 18 percent of federal spending. The $882 billion spent on interest exceeds the defense budget. Historian Niall Ferguson has called this a hallmark of national decline. By 2054, debt service will claim one-third of revenue, surpassing Social Security. If we don’t change course, Medicare, Social Security and debt service will eventually consume all federal revenue,” wrote Dr. Cassidy.
“During the Biden administration, inflation and high interest rates crushed working families. Most Americans don’t have lobbyists advocating for them. Instead, they elected President Trump and a Republican Congress to bring relief. That means staying committed to fiscal conservatism. Congress must listen and act,” continued Dr. Cassidy.
The op-ed follows Dr. Cassidy’s vote to pass a six-month funding bill that cuts government spending.
“Republicans don’t want to take away benefits Americans rely on. We support lower taxes. We can extend the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in a way maintains benefits, keeps taxes lower and keeps the American Dream alive. Let’s seize that opportunity,” Dr. Cassidy concluded.
Read the full op-ed here or excepts below.
The National Debt is Crushing the American Dream
There are competing priorities in the reconciliation bill before Congress. Some want to make the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act permanent. Others want to reduce our $36 trillion national debt and prevent it from reaching $65 trillion by 2034. The goal should be economic growth — not just measured by the S&P 500, but by middle-class families’ ability to afford groceries, buy a home, purchase a car and live the American Dream.
To achieve that end, we must address spending and debt. Out-of-control expenditures and rising debt fuel inflation, pushing Treasury yields higher. This ripples through the economy, making loans tied to 10-year Treasuries more expensive. If debt climbs from $36 trillion to $65 trillion, as some proposals allow, it will pump more money into the economy, driving up inflation and the cost of financing that debt.
President Trump understands this. His efforts to cut spending, increase revenue in creative ways and balance the budget show his awareness of the problem. But extending the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act without adjustments would make a balanced budget impossible.
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Republicans don’t want to take away benefits Americans rely on. We support lower taxes. We can extend the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in a way maintains benefits, keeps taxes lower and keeps the American Dream alive. Let’s seize that opportunity.
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