Why don't rich people want to serve their country and pay their fair share like they once did
Why have Republicans sold out the country and become hacks for coorporations and the wealthy
Where were all you right wing blabbermouths while Reagan and the Bushes were making this mess
The total national debt was less than a trillion dollars when Ronald Reagan cut taxes for the wealthy and in twelve years he and Bush41 had quadrupled it to $4.3 trillion
Clinton raised taxes and in eight years was generating surpluses
Along came slow walkin, slow talkin George and in eight years he had doubled it again from $5,7 trillion to nearly $12 trillion. Oh yeah...I forgot to mention that he cut taxes twice and started two wars.
The problem is you are looking at the Debt issue from the wrong perspective.
When Jimmy Carter took office, the "National Debt" was a mere 600 billion. This was all the debt we had run up in 200 years of history, including the space program, two world wars, an interstate highway system, huge entitlement spending and so on. But we mostly had enough money to cover that, alternatively running surpluses and deficits.
So what changed in 1976?
1976 was the first year we imported more goods than we exported.
Prior to that time, we were pulling in money from the rest of the world. We were the world's factory. The world wars were a big boost, but we continued some time afterwards, until the rest of the world caught up using methods we pioneered and improved upon them.
By the end of Carter, it was up to a trillion in debt. Carter ran up 400 billion in new debt. Reagan increased it to 3 trillion, Bush to 4.3, Clinton to 6 trillion and Bush-43 to 10 trillion.
Now Obama has gotten it up to 15 trillion.
Because we are still spending like it was 1976, even though we are bleeding money out of the country at a rate of 500 billion a year in trade deficits.