No, Trump, the U.S. Can’t Pay Down the National Debt with Oil – By Dominic Pino (National Review) / Jan 24, 2024
This repeated claim from the GOP front-runner demonstrates the total unseriousness of today’s fiscal conversation.
Joe Biden has overseen massive government spending and some of the largest annual deficits in U.S. history. Had Senators Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema voted as Biden wanted on the Build Back Better Act, the spending would be trillions greater. To run against him, the Republican Party appears ready to renominate Donald Trump, who, as president, signed off on $8.4 trillion in new debt and apparently thinks he can pay it down with oil.
Trump said in his Iowa victory speech, “We’re going to drill. We’re going to use that money to lower your taxes even further. We gave you the biggest tax cut in history, and we’re going to lower them further. And we’re also going to pay off national debt.”
First of all, lowering taxes, even if desirable for other reasons, would contribute to increasing the debt if not offset with spending cuts. So Trump’s own promises are already working at cross purposes.
CONTINUE > https://www.nationalreview.com/2024/01/no-trump-the-u-s-cant-pay-down-the-national-debt-with-oil/
