When we were kids in school, we all learned the basics about money and how to count it, right? Growing up in a small rural town in Central Mississippi, I received the same basic education as everyone else who had access to the school system. This week, I turned 56, and I realized that many financial situations I’ve faced in life have gone far beyond the simple lessons from elementary school.
Back then, I couldn’t even imagine the number of zeros in a trillion dollars. Honestly, it still seems unreal to me. After finishing college at the University of Southern Mississippi, I started working on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. It was an exciting experience for a boy from a small Mississippi town. I quickly learned that everything moved at a much faster pace, and the approach to spending was entirely different on the Hill.
I soon learned the famous quote by Republican Illinois Senator Everett Dirksen, “A billion here, a billion there, pretty soon, you’re talking real money,” was pretty much the norm in Washington, D.C. Back in 1989, our national debt was only $152.1 billion. That doesn’t seem like a lot, does it? Especially considering Senator Dirksen’s perspective. Now, 35 years later, it’s a completely different story. Our national debt is now at $35 trillion. What went wrong? What caused this?
I believe an increasing entitlement mindset has developed in our country. I’m referring to the two-thirds of our annual budget that goes to social security, welfare, Medicare, food stamps, and other related programs that our elected representatives have made citizens (and non-citizens) dependent upon, which they dare not touch. Instead, as the number of people needing these programs grows each year, so does the spending.
But I want to talk about another “entitlement” that is costing us more than all those programs combined. Can you guess what that might be? It’s the political class that our founding fathers never imagined would become what it is today. We have people running for office, getting elected, and then staying in that federal office for over 50 years. If Jefferson could see this, I think he would be appalled.
Along with this “lifetime” in Congress comes a sense of entitlement that our elected Members of Congress have come to expect for themselves. Doing the “right thing” isn’t at the top of their list anymore. No, the only thing that matters is their next election. They avoid touching entitlement spending. These same Members who talk about the need for cutting spending turn around and vote to raise the debt ceiling to avoid our government not being able to pay our bills. It’s pretty obvious to me that we haven’t been able to pay our bills for quite a long time without our government just printing more money. This is how you go from a debt of $1.5 billion to a debt of over $35 trillion. They just can’t seem to ever say the word no!
These same Democrats and Republicans are always securing “earmarks” in the Appropriations Committee, directing, and bringing, billions of dollars to their home state or district. Meanwhile, many of these Members are on TV every night talking about the need to cut spending. But they continue to add “earmarks” for their home state because it helps them get reelected. Remember, that’s what’s most important to them.
Unfortunately, this problem isn’t just a Democrat or Republican issue. No, it affects nearly every elected Member of Congress, regardless of their political party. There are a few true conservatives like Jim Jordan and Chip Roy, but they don’t have enough support to right our ship. Can our country really afford to repay $35 trillion in debt that continues to grow each day? We could build a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier with the money we spend on interest payments each day. We have far exceeded our capacity to recover without immediate action.
The presidency is very important for many reasons, as it is an enormous seat of power. But, whoever is elected to that position serves for at least four years and at most eight. Our problem isn’t at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Our country’s problem lies in both chambers of Congress. We must elect people who are willing to make the hard decisions. We must elect people who will stand firm and demand spending cuts to our budgets. We don’t have the money to continue funding wars in Ukraine, Israel, or to defend Taiwan. We can’t afford to keep our borders open and then pay for the entitlement spending for all the immigrants. There is so much waste in our government that continues to grow every year.
Today, our debt is at $35 trillion. Can we sustain it growing larger? Maybe to $50 or $60 trillion? Perhaps, but our economy will continue to suffer the impact of such national debt. We don’t have enough Jim Jordans and Chip Roys in Congress. We need to send them help. We need to defeat liberal Democrats who don’t care about the future of our country. We also need to defeat Republicans who are “RINOs” (Republican in name only). We must elect true conservative men and women to represent us in Congress, who will vote their conscience and not just for things that will get them reelected.
I know a common suggestion to address this issue is to call for term limits on Congress. I am a strong supporter of this idea. However, we don’t have a national initiative and referendum process in our country that would allow us, the citizens, to place term limits on the ballot. If we did, it would likely pass on the first ballot with 90% approval.
The choice is ours. We can make the tough choices and elect men and women who will right our ship, or we can continue on the wayward course we are on now. If we don’t correct our pathway immediately, when we reach a $50 trillion debt, we will not only see the total collapse of our economy but also the collapse of our government as we know it. We will no longer have the country we have known and loved. It’s up to all of us.
So, what will you do? Will you be a patriot and stand up and force the hard decisions to be made? Or, will you just go along with the majority of our Congressmen and Congresswomen? The choice is ours as to what type, if any, of our country we leave for our children.
