The Financial Cost of Supporting Our Friends
The American people have always prided themselves on their military might and their ability to protect their citizens. But as the U.S. government continues to pour billions of dollars into foreign conflicts and wars, it's becoming increasingly clear that the high cost of these decisions is taking a toll on our nation's finances.
President Biden is meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv on Wednesday as the White House tries to show solidarity with its chief ally in the Middle East after Hamas killed some 1,400 Israelis during an Oct. 7TH attack. (AP)
President Joe Biden is considering a supplemental request of about $100 billion for defense aid to countries like Israel, Ukraine, and Taiwan, according to recent reports.
This request comes at a time when the U.S. is already facing a staggering federal debt of over $33 trillion, with a large portion of that going towards interest payments on the national debt alone.
A Treasury Department report last month showed that the deficit — the gap between what the United States spends and what it collects through taxes and other revenue — was $1.5 trillion for the first 11 months of the fiscal year, a 61 percent increase from the same period a year ago.
As President Biden landed in Israel with the promise of billions of dollars on U.S. aid, the National debt hit $33,566,176,560,888.78.
These statistics are sobering and should serve as a wake-up call to all Americans. Each citizen owes a portion of this debt, estimated to be as of today; that’s $99,964.00 for each citizen. And this debt is only growing larger with each passing moment.
But what does this historical debt mean for individual states, like Colorado?
Under this new spending request, each Coloradan would owe a portion of the estimated $33 trillion, adding to the already mounting federal debt. And as the debt continues to grow, the U.S. will be forced to make difficult choices about where to allocate its resources. This could result in potential cuts to important programs and services, or even worse, a decline in our nation's defense capabilities.
One trillion, let alone 33, is a number many folks can’t quite wrap their heads around. It is “a million times a million” — though “trillion” sounds so close to “billion” that it’s easy to lose track of just how behemoth a sum it is.
Furthermore, as we continue to borrow from foreign nations, such as China, to fund these wars and underwrite the conflicts of other nations, we are also essentially bankrolling our enemies. This puts America in a precarious position, especially as tensions rise between major world powers.
But perhaps the most concerning aspect of this financial burden is the potential impact on our military.
As interest payments on the debt continue to consume a significant portion of tax revenue, cuts may have to be made to our military budget to keep up. This could mean reducing the number of overseas troops and bases and weakening our nation's defense capabilities.
In fact, financial historian Niall Ferguson has warned about this very scenario, stating that when the cost of servicing a nation's debt surpasses the cost of defending its borders, it is a sign that the nation is on the brink of collapse.
This is a reality that the United States cannot afford to ignore.
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