Trump's Failure: Federal Debt Approaches Size of US GPD

The president touts his "miracle economic recovery" in terms of lies, not exaggerations. His miracle is driven in large part by increased federal debt and the gushing up of wealth to the top 1-2% who are freed from both taxes and society and environment defending regulations. A Washington Post article, U.S. government debt will nearly equal the size of the entire economy for first time since World War II, CBO finds, reports what the title says:

“By the end of 2020, the amount of debt owed by the U.S. will amount to 98 percent of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product, the highest level since the end of World War II, the CBO said. Total government debt will surpass the U.S. economy’s size next year, CBO said.

Fueling this rise is a big jump in the government’s annual budget deficit, which is projected to widen to $3.3 trillion by the end of this fiscal year, more than tripling since 2019. The deficit was already on track to be very elevated because of recent tax cuts and spending increases, but the government’s response to the pandemic changed things markedly.”

WaPo points out that republicans routinely claim they want to reduce the deficit. But as far as I can tell, that is only when democrats are in charge. When the GOP controls government, federal debt is irrelevant as the GOP passes laws to increase the rate of wealth gushing up to the top 1-2%. That has been standard GOP practice for decades. When democrats are in charge, republican hypocrites, about 97% of the GOP in congress and ~97% of elected GOP politicians, scream bloody murder about the federal debt. They rarely give even little squeak of mild milquetoast protest when the GOP is in charge.

It is true that democrats helped to increase unfunded spending and thus the debt by passing a major COVID-19 spending bill. That spending was in the face of a pandemic and an economic collapse. By stark contrast, the president and the GOP passed a budget-busting tax relief bill that mostly benefited rich people bill in 2017 while the US was in its 7th year of economic expansion. 

What is a reasonable conception of an economically successful federal policy?

Is it fair and balanced to call economic policy that adds to federal debt in times of economic growth a failure? Or, is increased economic growth at the expense of trillions in added federal debt in a growing economy a success? Or, does it not matter? If debt expands during times of growth, what about times of no growth? Is no growth a good time to shut federal spending down? 

Glazed eyeballs

I know, many eyeballs glaze over when the concepts like federal debt and economic policy are mentioned. That is unfortunate. Those concepts "run amok", as one person here likes to say, could help kill democracy, civil liberties and the rule of law as we used to know those concepts. Public detachment from, or boredom with, those economic concerns can and just might usher in a corrupt, incompetent authoritarian kleptocrat government. When that happens, people like me will probably be shut up in due course. Maybe in a year. Maybe in two or three. But it will come if past demagogic tyrannies are reliable evidence.

Regardless of the details, a veil of darkness will fall. Then cruel, corrupt, incompetent, deeply immoral self-serving beasts will control our fates.