Via ZeroHedge
* * *
* * *
Total U.S. national debt hit a new record high overnight
at over $18 trillion as the Obama administration continues to pile debt onto
the back of the U.S. taxpayer at a rate that makes George W. Bush
look prudent!
With the U.S. national debt or government debt now at
over a staggering $18 trillion, it means that each household in the U.S. now
carries the burden of $124,000 in national debt alone - or $56,378 per
individual.
(This does not include the massive private debt or
household debt burden - people’s
mortgages, personal loans, credit card debt, student loans, car loans
and other household debt.)
When Obama took office in 2009, the national debt had
surged to $10.6 trillion up from $3 trillion at the beginning of Bush’s tenure
in 2001.
* NOT DEFENDING BUSH... HOWEVER... TO BE FAIR... THE DEMS
CONTROLLED BOTH HOUSES OF CONGRESS DURING THE LAST TWO YEARS OF BUSH'S SECOND
TERM - WHICH IS WHEN THE "BUSH" DEBT REALLY TOOK OFF.
(*SHRUG*)
It also means that total U.S. debt has increased by 70%
under Obama, from $10.625 trillion on January 21, 2009 to over $18.005 trillion
today.
As ever, historical context is all important.
The U.S National Debt took 43 Presidents from 1789 until
2008 to reach $9 trillion. The National Debt rose $4.899 trillion during the
two terms of the Bush presidency. It has now gone up nearly $8 trillion since
President Obama took office.
* AGAIN, FOLKS... IT'S REASONABLE TO SEPARATE THE FIRST
SIX YEARS OF BUSH/RINO CONGRESS FROM THE TWO YEARS OF BUSH/DEMOCRAT CONGRESS.
(SAME WITH OBAMA/DEMS, OBAMA/SPLIT, AND OBAMA/RINO.)
* ANYWAY... TO GET BACK TO THE POINT...
In short, the federal government has borrowed, and spent,
nearly $7.5 trillion more since President Obama took office than it has
collected in taxes.
* FURTHERMORE...
Obama’s policies have continued to favor Wall Street and
corporate interests over Main Street.
* AIN'T THAT THE TRUTH!
The U.S. national debt is spiraling out of control,
seemingly without any plan to ever reign it in and yet the rise above $18
trillion was not reported in mainstream media.
* NOT WIDELY... BUT IT WAS REPORTED.
Compared to this time last year, the national debt has
grown by another $1 trillion. ... Astoundingly, more than $7 trillion of
additional U.S. national debt will have been accumulated over the 8 year
duration of Obama’s two presidencies, which is more than the accumulated U.S.
national debt of all previous U.S. presidents combined.
(This is not to mention the astronomical expenses of more
than $200 trillion of U.S. government unfunded liabilities such as medicare,
medicaid and social security.)
Household debt - including mortgages, credit cards, auto
loans and student loans - remains close to $12 trillion.
The U.S. debt position increasingly has all the hallmarks
of a Ponzi scheme. The Daily Treasury Statement that was released last
Wednesday afternoon as Americans were preparing to eat turkey on Thanksgiving
revealed that the U.S. Treasury has been forced to issue $1,040,965,000,000 in
new debt since fiscal 2015 started. This is just eight weeks ago. they had to
do this in order to raise the money to pay off Treasury securities that were
maturing and to cover new deficit spending by the government.
(*SNORT*)
* AND YET IN A WORLDWIDE RACE TO THE BOTTOM THE U.S. HAS
RECENTLY EXPERIENCED A SURGE IN THE COMPARATIVE VALUE OF THE DOLLAR! IT'S
INSANE!
During those eight weeks since fiscal 2015 started,
Treasury took in $341,591,000,000 ($342 billion) in revenues. That was a record
for the period between October 1 and November 25. But that record in revenues
was not enough to finance ongoing government spending let alone pay off old
debt that matured.
* ONE... MORE... TIME...
During those eight weeks since fiscal 2015 started,
Treasury took in $341,591,000,000 ($342 billion) in revenues. That was a record
for the period between October 1 and November 25. But that record in revenues
was not enough to finance ongoing government spending let alone pay off old
debt that matured.
* AND I'VE GOT BAD NEWS FOR YOU, FOLKS; THE GOP
ESTABLISHMENT - THE RINOs, THE BOEHNER/MCCONNELL CROWD - CAN'T BE TRUSTED TO
CUT ANY SPENDING. (GOD HELP US...)
A conservative measure of the U.S. National Debt to GDP
ratio is now around 103%. The talking heads have, for many years, downplayed
the out of control spending of successive administrations with the
justification that it was below the “psychologically important” debt to GDP
ratio of 100%. Well, here we are now over 100%...
(*PURSED LIPS*)
...and all is quiet.
The Total U.S. Debt to GDP ratio is now over 300%.
* AND ALL IS QUIET...
(*SIGH*)
U.S. government profligacy has been protected by the
extraordinary status that the dollar has enjoyed as a reserve currency since
the early 1970s and Nixon going off the Gold Standard.
Heretofore, almost all balance of trade deficits have
been settled with dollars.
All oil transactions have been settled in dollars.
* ACTUALLY THAT'S BEEN CHANGING LATELY... BUT YES... IT'S
STILL OVERWHELMINGLY TRUE.
This has allowed the U.S. an “exorbitant privilege” in
the words of Valéry Giscard d'Estaing,
the former French Minister of Finance; it has allowed us to live beyond our
means because our currency remained in demand regardless of our country's
economic performance.
Over the course of this year, however, the dollar has
taken what should be seen as an alarming series of blows to its status as
trusted sole global reserve currency as currency wars intensify. Increasingly,
the new power bloc that are the BRICS nations are settling their trade deficits
with domestic currencies, bypassing the dollar.
Russia and Turkey have just signed a gas-line agreement
to this effect - as have Russia and China.
There is a perception that the U.S. dollar is still
strong and is still the reserve currency of choice.
* AS I MENTIONED UP ABOVE...
This is based on the strong performance of the Dollar
Index as of late.
(*NOD*)
It is important to note the distinction between the
dollar and the Dollar Index. The index rates the dollar relative to a basket of
other - mainly western - currencies, primarily the euro. The recent “strength” of
the dollar is merely strength against these other struggling currencies -
including the euro.
* BINGO!
Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, pointed out
last week that “the seven developing economies headed by BRICS already have a
bigger GDP than the Western G7.” This drives home the message that the economic
might of the U.S. is waning. It is doubtful whether it will be able to
re-establish or indeed maintain the Bretton Woods paradigm which gave the
dollar it’s preeminent status.
* I FRANKLY CAN'T IMAGINE HOW IT CAN.
(*SHRUG*)
Another major cause for concern should be the impending
rise in interest rates. The ability of the U.S. to service its debt will be
drastically reduced if rates move higher.
* YEP...
Already a number of states have defaulted. The luxury of
determining interest rates may not be one that the Fed will enjoy for very much
longer. When rates do finally rise we may witness the default of the U.S.
* BETTER MAKE SURE THOSE NUCLEAR WEAPONS WORK!
If this specter comes to pass – and possibly independent
of it – there will be demand for a new store of wealth. History teaches us,
regardless of our own philosophical or economic outlook, that gold will be one
such store.
The BRICs countries are major purchasers of gold - both
their people and their central banks.
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