National Debt a Threat to Nations Security

The partisan battle is heating up to a feverish pitch. Both political parties are jockeying for position over who is better at handling the nation’s economy. The President recently accused the Republicans of running the country into the ditch while Republicans say the Democrat spending spree is out of control.

However, one issue that has neither party taking any responsibility is the mounting federal debt. That is, the total amount of money owed by the government. Each party blames the other.

Ironically, one voice that no one would ever expect to join the debate is the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen. In a recent stop to the Midwest, Admiral Mullen stated to a group of business leaders, "The most significant threat to our national security is our debt."

Let me underscore that again: Our military’s top commander says the greatest threat to this nation’s security is our federal debt. Our National Debt topples at nearly $13 trillion. In two years the interest alone on the debt will equal the size of the Defense Department’s entire budget of $600 billion. In fact, our situation is so dire that we’ve had to reach out to China to finance over $800 billion of U.S. debt obligations.

The climate in Washington is saturated with partisan warfare as both parties fail to grapple this impending national crisis. The current administration claims they are not to blame for this economic mess; instead, it’s the previous administration’s fault. They consistently point out the tax cuts for the wealthy as well as the Iraq and Afghanistan wars which begun during the Bush era.

That argument has merit. The Bush Administration was reckless with the federal budget. When President Bush was inaugurated the National Debt stood at nearly $6 trillion. Adding to that debt was an onerous prescription drug plan - another unfunded entitlement program.

When President Obama was sworn in the National debt topped out at $10.6 trillion. However, this Administration has had its own share of generous spending policies, including the hundreds of billions of dollars financing the stimulus spending plan, cash for clunker program, bailouts for corporations and banks well as an unfunded health care plan.

In February 2010, President Obama signed an Executive Order to create a bipartisan debt commission of 10 Democrats and 8 Republicans on how to deal with the National Debt. It’s headed by retired Senator Alan Simpson of Wyoming, who made it clear that everything is on the table including the highly controversial entitlement reform. They are to derive solutions to balance the federal budget by 2015.

If the commission is to have any success at all they have to include all elements of the budget. They must be willing to sacrifice any and all sacred programs. When push comes to shove, it’s not going to happen. We will never see sacred entitlement programs sacrificed on the National Debt altar. That’s why I believe this commission is more show than substance.

Leaders of both parties have endangered the security of this country by enacting spending bills that serve partisan interests at the expense of the country’s economic well being. Awash with debt the Obama Administration now wants another stimulus bill to help beleaguered state governments.

The cancer of reckless government spending has infected various states with the largest virtually bankrupt and groveling for more additional fiscal help, but doing nothing to solve the fundamental problem; government overspending.

California is the poster child for reckless spending! Look at the fiasco surrounding the Southern California City of Bell and its salary and pension payments to government officials.

If you research the spending practices of various state governments across the nation you will be shocked at the outrageous amount of questionable budgetary spending.

If the nation is going to recovery economically it has to curb its appetite for spending and spur economic growth and positive business policies. As much as the Administration thinks its economic agenda is moving in the right direction one only has to look at the anemic second quarter of 1.6 % growth.

I tend to agree with Admiral Mullen. The debt is threatening our national security. It’d be wise for government leaders to lend an ear and listen to the good Admiral. Otherwise, we will continue down the same dangerous road of economic stagnation – a road that dangerously threatens the security of this great nation.