Washington fiddles as national debt soars

Another year is behind us as time marches forward. So does the national debt. The number now is $21.903 trillion and counting. That’s more than $66,500 for every man, woman and child in the country. And let’s not forget that the stock market isn’t the only institution at the mercy of the Federal Reserve. So are our incessantly borrowing politicians.

As interest rates for consumers rise, so too do interest payments on the national debt. In 2018, the federal government paid about $263 billion in interest on its accumulated obligations — more than 6 percent of all spending. The Congressional Budget Office reports that annual payments on the debt will exceed annual defense outlays by 2023. That’s when debt payments are projected to top $700 billion.

“Debt as a share of gross domestic product is projected to climb over the next decade,” wrote Kate Davidson and Daniel Kruger in The Wall Street Journal last month, “from 78 percent at the end of this year — the highest it has been since the end of World War II — to 96.2 percent in 2028, according to CBO projections.”

Democrats will no doubt blame the Trump tax cuts. But the debt’s trajectory long predates 2017. Besides, tax relief, along with regulatory reform, have helped jump-start a moribund Obama economy. That, in turn, juiced economic growth, which is vital to attacking deficits. In fact, the congressional addiction to spending is far more culpable for the looming financial crackup.

The problem, of course, is bipartisan. Both Republicans and Democrats remain hooked on spending other people’s money. For their part, Republicans at least profess a desire to treat their addiction. Democrats seem to have no such compunction.

At some point, however, perhaps progressives will eventually realize that soaring interest payments threaten their the survival of their cherished domestic spending programs as well as entitlements. Making the necessary choices will only become more difficult as time moves on.