The Nation's Credit Card

By U.S. Senator Jon Kyl President Obama recently called current deficit spending "unsustainable," and warned of soaring interest rates if the United States continues to finance government by borrowing from other countries. "We can't keep on just borrowing from China," the president said at a town-hall meeting. "We have to pay interest on that debt, and that means we are mortgaging our children's future with more and more debt." This is all true. So why has President Obama continued to propose more borrowing and spending than any president in history, especially after promising a net spending reduction on the campaign trail? If Washington is serious about saving our children and grandchildren from unsustainable debt, it should rein in the irresponsible spending that has characterized President Obamas first four months in office and curtail future spending. President Obamas budget puts us on course to amass debt that will reach 82.4 percent of gross domestic product by 2019. Thats over 80 percent of our national income. Of course this debt isnt interest free. By 2013, the federal government will spend more than $1 billion per day on finance charges for this debt. Thats $3.3 million per day for every American. Can a family play by these rules and run up a deficit larger than 80 percent of its total income? A typical Arizona family earns an income of $47,215 a year. If one such family follows the presidents example, it would accrue nearly $38,000 in credit-card debt in just one year to pay for the things it wants, but cant afford with its income. Needless to say, that kind of borrowing and spending is not sustainable. It would rapidly lower the familys standard of living, and in many cases bankrupt it. A family with such large debt would also be considered a big risk for lenders. As the president said, weve gotten into this situation with China, which currently holds 9.3 percent of our nations debt. We are relying on the Chinese to continue buying that debt. But in mid-March, Chinese premier Wen Jiabao voiced concerns about U.S. government bond holdings: "We have lent huge amounts of money to the United States, he said. Of course we are concerned about the safety of our assets. To be honest, I am a little bit worried, and I would like to... call on the United States to honor its word and remain a credible nation and ensure the safety of Chinese assets." The president has identified a few billion dollars in proposed cuts for this year, which hardly register when we are talking about multiple trillions of dollars in spending and debt. To use an analogy provided by columnist Byron York, try to imagine the difference between a billion and a trillion. Think of one dollar as one second in time. A billion dollars equals 31 years. A trillion dollars equals 310 centuries. Republicans want to work with the president to get the debt under control. During the budget process, we offered a series of proposals designed to place responsible limits on future borrowing and spending, and we will continue to do so as we vote on future spending plans. At some point, Washington will have to match its rhetoric about fiscal responsibility with action. Otherwise, the U.S. will not be able to avoid unprecedented budgetary and economic crisis. Is this really the legacy this administration and this Congress want to leave behind? U.S. Senator Jon Kyl is the Assistant Republican Leader and serves on the Senate Finance and Judiciary committees. Visit his website at www.kyl.senate.gov.