In the jaws of debt
Goldman CEO calls for focus on US deficit
Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon said that US policymakers need to put greater “focus” on the nation’s ballooning debt and deficit — warning that the federal government’s “ability to spend without constraint is not unlimited.”
“I think the level of debt in the United States [and] the level of spending is something that we need a sharper focus on and more dialogue around than what we’ve seen,” the 62-year-old investment banking chief told Bloomberg Television on Monday.
Solomon said that while it was anticipated that the government would spend to prop up the economy during COVID lockdowns, “we’re a long way out of that pandemic.”
“The spending levels . . . are continuing at a pace that I think is raising our debt level and creating issues for us down the road,” the Goldman boss said.
Solomon said the issue is “something that deserves a lot of attention.”
“It’s not getting as much attention as I’d like to see it get right now,” he said, noting that the US is in the midst of an election year. “But I do think it’s something that requires focus.”
Solomon said “we need to deal with the debt and the deficits.”
“Hopefully, there will be a lot more discussion [about the issue] as we move through the election and into the next administration.”
Since coming into office in January 2021, President Biden’s administration has enacted legislation calling for the spending of more than $1 trillion on various items such as infrastructure, COVID relief, domestic semiconductor manufacturing and climate initiatives.
Biden on Monday unveiled a $7.3 trillion electionyear budget that calls for raising taxes on corporations and high earners.
But critics have accused the Biden administration of exacerbating the nation’s debt crisis.
The national debt, which recently surpassed $34 trillion, is on course to exceed $45.7 trillion within a decade — which is roughly 114% of the gross domestic product, according to projections by the Congressional Budget Office.
Solomon also sounded upbeat about the economy, saying it was “chugging along pretty well.”
Nonetheless, Solomon expects inflation to persist at high levels.