Out of Control Debt

If we were serious about paying of the U.S. National Debt each American  would have to shell out $52,000. If we relied on only employed Americans the amount increases to $106,000.  The nation's debt  has grown 58 percent under President Obama, according to Harvard University's Institute of Politics annual report on the USA.

Today the nation's debt is $17 Trillion, up from $10.6 trillion inherited by Obama. “The debt has grown so quickly because of large and repeated annual deficits in federal spending,” said the report.

The Annual Report of the USA, done in partnership with the American Education Foundation, found that food stamp usage has surged 77 percent during the recession and that Social Security benefits will be slashed 23 percent starting in 2033 unless Congress and the White House institute sweeping reforms.

“If the federal government spent its yearly revenues exclusively on debt reduction and ceased all of its operations, it would take three of four years to pay down the debt.

Harvard said that from the beginning of the recession in late 2007, average monthly participation in the food stamp program jumped to historic levels and an annual bill of $30.4 billion.

The news isn't much better on the Social Security front: “Without reform, Social Security beneficiaries will face a 23 percent benefit cut in 2033. By 2087, beneficiaries will receive 28 percent less than calculated under the current benefit formula."