The Bottom Line: New Fiscal Roadmap Project Paper on “Deficit Reduction: Lessons From Around the World”
The U.S. economy appears to be gradually recovering, and positive growth is expected now and for the rest of the year. Looking ahead, however, U.S. policymakers will need to take steps to put our fiscal house in order once the recovery is on firmer footing. In the absence of policy change, U.S. debt is headed sharply upward coming out of the current economic and financial crisis – and this is even before the Baby Boom retirement tsunami hits the budget.
For all Americans, this means that a growing portion of the budget will be devoted to interest payments on debt service – rather than on new, important pro-growth priorities related to environmental and infrastructure initiatives, for example. Our standards of living and well-being will undoubtedly suffer over time. This is no way for a great nation to conduct its business.
