Latest U.S. National Debt Amount

[KenH]

 

[atpollard]

A balanced budget is easily within reach, we just need to either:

1. reduce Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and Veterans benefits by 50%
or
2. reduce everything else (like Defense and Highway spending) to ZERO.

Then spending and revenue will balance.
So, who is volunteering to have their SS payments cut in half?
Who votes to eliminate the US Military, interstate Highway System and National Parks, instead?
Look up the numbers … 50% of mandatory spending or 100% of discretionary spending needs to be eliminated just to balance the budget to stop the GROWTH of the debt. We will need to tighten that belt harder if we want to actually pay down that debt.

 

[Salty]

I will address the military (15 years active + 8 years State Guard)
Obviously, we cannot cut ACTUAL Defense spending!

First, lets see how much a GI Makes per month
____________PVT E-3 < 2 years ----------Sgt -E-6- 4 years-----Major/ LTCommander- 8 years

Basic pay--------$ 2,378 -------------------$ 3,741----------------------$ 8,128
Housing *_________1,563........................................1,581............................................2,427
Meals---------------460.25---------------------460.25........................................ 316.98
Clothing--------------50..............................................50......................................................-0-

Total---------------4,451.........................................5,832...........................................$10,872

In addition there are additional allowance for retention, combat pay, ect
Of the above - only basic pay is taxable - so that E-6 receives about $2,000 tax free (at least $200 savings)
Housing is bases on location of the base. For this example, I used Ft Hood, Tx.

As you can see - a GI gets a nice little pay check!

So what could be cut in the Armed Forces.

1) Child care Should single parents be permitted in the Army - I say NO!
2) Overseas - more overseas assignments should be one year - without dependents
In addition - DoD should not move dependents for a sponsors overseas tour
3) Uniforms - no more new uniforms over the past 20 years, the army has changed dress uniform twice.
4)

What would you add to the above list:


From the Heritage Foundation
From DODGE
From NPP
From Thomas Jefferson

 

[Salty]

any comments about single parents in the Army?

 

[Ben1445]

any comments about single parents in the Army?

I would agree that if you have children, they need a parent in the home, not in the barracks. Exceptions are reasonable for car accidents etc. I wouldn’t end someone’s career and give them a pink slip if they lose a spouse by accident or illness. In the case of divorce I would say that the spouse should be divorced from any benefits. Not sure how this works currently.
don’t ask me how that works if both parents are enlisted. Are there rules about that?

 

[Salty]

If there is a divorce - the spouse looses her military ID - but if there are kids - the kids will have an id to get them on base to use the hospital, px. ect. If there is retirement involved, if the marriage has lasted for at least 10 years (while the sponsor is on Active duty) she gets 1/2 of his retirement pay and retains all military benefits, ID card, medical, commissary, ect.

"
In the Army, 3,000 more active-duty soldiers were non-deployable due to legal reasons in 2019 than due to pregnancy
In fact, in the Army, 3,000 more active-duty soldiers were non-deployable due to legal reasons in 2019 (6,325 soldiers a month on average) than due to pregnancy (3,454 soldiers). In the Marine Corps, about 700 more Marines were non-deployable due to administrative problems every month (about 1,940 Marines) than from pregnancy (1,249 Marines). Pregnant or post-partum Marines accounted for 0.003% to 0.005% of the Marine Corps’ end strength, officials said." Link for this info:

 

[JonC]

A balanced budget is easily within reach, we just need to either:

1. reduce Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and Veterans benefits by 50%
or
2. reduce everything else (like Defense and Highway spending) to ZERO.

Then spending and revenue will balance.
So, who is volunteering to have their SS payments cut in half?
Who votes to eliminate the US Military, interstate Highway System and National Parks, instead?
Look up the numbers … 50% of mandatory spending or 100% of discretionary spending needs to be eliminated just to balance the budget to stop the GROWTH of the debt. We will need to tighten that belt harder if we want to actually pay down that debt.

Problem with Social Security is it is not a benefit but a bad investment into which citizens are compelled to invest by the government.

Seniors are not getting social security income from the government, they are getting a return on their own investment that the government mismanaged.

Most of our debt is owed to ourselves.

I think a few steps could help.

1. Reduce government administration.
2. Give some departments back to the states
3. Stop funding stupidity
4. Decrease involvement in foreign affairs when not directly in our interest

Problem is to reverse course and still stay afloat will cost money.

 

[KenH]

As of 7/31/25 - Two months left in fiscal year 2025.

 

[KenH]

 

[Salty]

And who is responsible - I say Congress

Even the US Army is taking a hit, to the tune of 2 million dollars.
"On 2 July 2025 the Army announced that the Military Working Equid program that includes the 1st Cavalry Division Horse Cavalry Detachment will cease operations and associated assets (MWEs) will be transferred, adopted, or donated within one year. The Army stated "This initiative will save the Army $2 million annually and will allow the funds and Soldiers dedicated to MWE programs to be redirected to readiness and warfighting priorities."[6]"
link for the quote: 1st Cavalry Division Horse Cavalry Detachment - Wikipedia

That 2 mill is only about 0.00113%of the annual deficit - but a couple mill here, a couple mill there - it all adds up!

 

[KenH]

And who is responsible - I say Congress

I say it's the American people - we have let this go on for the entire 21st century thus far - 85% of the national debt has been accumulated in just the 21st century.

 

[Salty]

I say it's the American people - we have let this go on for the entire 21st century thus far - 85% of the national debt has been accumulated in just the 21st century.

BUT everyone wants to cut the budget - EXECPT for their pet projects!

 

[atpollard]

BUT everyone wants to cut the budget - EXECPT for their pet projects!

… and it still is not even CLOSE to making a difference:

A balanced budget is easily within reach, we just need to either:

1. reduce Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and Veterans benefits by 50%
or
2. reduce everything else (like Defense and Highway spending) to ZERO.

Then spending and revenue will balance.
So, who is volunteering to have their SS payments cut in half?
Who votes to eliminate the US Military, interstate Highway System and National Parks, instead?
Look up the numbers … 50% of mandatory spending or 100% of discretionary spending needs to be eliminated just to balance the budget to stop the GROWTH of the debt. We will need to tighten that belt harder if we want to actually pay down that debt.

Slashing budgets (large or small cuts) are just rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.
That will not fix this problem.

Here you go, cut $2 trillion ($2,000 billion) from the budget:

$1.31 T
Social Security

$841 B
Net Interest

$823 B
Medicare

$805 B
Health

$758 B
National Defense

$608 B
Income Security

$310 B
Veterans Benefits and Services

$164 B
Education, Training, Employment, and Social Services

$112 B
Transportation

$76 B
Natural Resources and Environment

$164 B
Other

 

[Salty]

… and it still is not even CLOSE to making a difference:



Slashing budgets (large or small cuts) are just rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.
That will not fix this problem.

Here you go, cut $2 trillion ($2,000 billion) from the budget:

$1.31 T
Social Security

$841 B
Net Interest

$823 B
Medicare

$805 B
Health

$758 B
National Defense

$608 B
Income Security

$310 B
Veterans Benefits and Services

$164 B
Education, Training, Employment, and Social Services

$112 B
Transportation

$76 B
Natural Resources and Environment

$164 B
Other

How about cutting any project that is not constitutional (per the 10th amendment) - which included many programs.


now, SS and Medicare - was paid for by the participants. - be careful with that.

 

[atpollard]

How about cutting any project that is not constitutional (per the 10th amendment) - which included many programs.


now, SS and Medicare - was paid for by the participants. - be careful with that.

Ok,
let’s cut out …

- $164 B = Other (all the small programs not mandated by laws)
- $76 B = Natural Resources and Environment (no national parks, monuments or EPC)
- $112 B = Transportation (no NTSB, no railroad subsidies to maintain track, no federal highways, no airports)
- $164 B = Education, Training, Employment, and Social Services (No student loans, no mental health facilities)
- $310 B = Veterans Benefits and Services (No VA & no veterans benefits)
- $608 B = Income Security (no unemployment benefits)

[note that things like “unemployment” will still be deducted from your pay since that money is needed to pay for the remaining items that have not been cut … only the benefit if you are actually unemployed will be cut.]

That adds up to $1,434 Billion.
We still need to cut $556 Billion from these:

$1.31 T = Social Security
$841 B = Net Interest (cannot be cut without defaulting on the National Debt and rendering the US $ worthless)
$823 B = Medicare
$805 B = Health
$758 B = National Defense

So where are you going to cut $556 B from?
Reduce SS by 50%?
Close all the Public Hospitals and the CDC (Health)?
Reduce the Armed Forces by 75% to a strictly North America Defense force?

 

[KenH]

28% of yearly federal government spending is paid for using borrowed money, thus adding to the national debt.

Seems to me they could balance the federal budget and stop adding to the national debt this way:

1) Decrease federal spending across all categories by 2.8% year over year for five years.

2) Increase federal revenue by 2.8% year over year for five years.

3) Thus, after 5 years, federal spending would be decreased by 14%.

4) Thus, after 5 years, federal revenue would be increased by 14%.

5) Thus, after 5 years, the federal budget would be balanced.

This would spread the pain of balancing the federal budget across all income groups - rich, middle class, and poor - and across all age groups - elderly, middle aged, and young.

It is past time for the American people to come to grips with the fact that this spending hoedown they have been voting for so far in the 21st century needs to come to an end, and they must deal with the consequences of their profligacy.

 

[atpollard]

1) Decrease federal spending across all categories by 2.8% year over year for five years.

As long as we go into this with our eyes open to the fact that there is roughly a 4% general inflation rate, so 4% inflation plus a (rounding) 3% real cut is a 7% per year decrease in effective spending. So 7% less of everything that YOU want/need from the Government.