Dumbing Things Down for Joe Biden

Having served 36 years as a U.S. Senator, eight years as Vice President, and 31 months as President, you wouldn’t think Joe Biden would need a refresher course in Economics 101.

Well, think again.

Recently, Joe proved just how economically-challenged he really is by proudly telling an audience, “In my first two years, I reduced the debt by $1.7 trillion. No president has ever done that.”
If that were true, Joe would be justified in taking a bow and an extended victory lap. But alas, it is not. Not… even… close.

The truth of the matter is that the national debt has increased by $4.7 trillion under Joe Biden, including $1.4 trillion during the first nine months of this year alone. Last year’s deficit was also $1.4 trillion but spread over 12 months. Today, the national debt stands at a whopping $32.7 trillion… and counting.

My guess is that Joe was once again confusing the national debt with the budget deficit. The former is an accumulative figure whereas the latter is an annual one. You know that and I know that but – based on the number of times he has conflated the two terms – Joe doesn’t.

Nor does Joe appear to realize that spending more than you have, but less than you expected to, is still bad economic policy. For example, if the last time you went to the casinos you lost $1,000 but this time you only lost $800, you can’t tell people that you “saved” $200 on your most recent casino trip. Got it, Joe?

If you want to get really sick to your stomach, take a look at the U.S. Debt Clock. I suffer from vertigo, so I dare not stare at the spinning dials very long as the amount of debt with which we are saddling our children, grandchildren, and all future generations of Americans continues to grow exponentially. To date, every American citizen “owes” $98,000 and every American taxpayer “owes” $254,000.

Do you want to get even more hot and bothered? Visit Treasury.gov and you will see the following self-congratulatory phrase: “The U.S. government has spent $5.30 trillion in fiscal year 2023 to ensure the well-being of the people of the United States.” Then look below that sentence and read (in much smaller print) how that number represents a $471 billion increase (10%) over last year.

Still not nauseated enough? Then check out the Congressional Budget Office’s website where you will find this unsettling fact: “The federal deficit in 2022 was $1.4 trillion, equal to 5.5 percent of gross domestic product, almost 2 percentage points greater than the average over the past 50 years.” In other words, we are spending money we don’t have at an historically high rate… and there appears to be no end in sight.

As the old saying goes, “When you find yourself in a hole, stop digging!”

For me, the 2024 presidential election can’t get here fast enough. Meanwhile, my advice to the dozen or so serious GOP candidates is simple: (1) propose a balanced budget amendment; and (2) promise an across-the-board freeze on all government spending followed by an across-the-board mandatory cut in all programs excluding defense, Social Security, and Medicare.

Do that and you’re sure to get a lot of votes. Definitely mine… and maybe even Joe’s, providing that someone steers him to the polls and helps him fill out his ballot.