Trump: I will eliminate U.S. debt in 8 years

a reply to: MrSpad

The quickest way to end remove the debt over a few decades would be to go back raising taxes to where they were before in the 50s-70s but, that would mean massive tax increases for people and companies. And everybody knows tax increases mean political suicide.

In that scenario, we would have to get rid of 401(k)s and millions of Americans have their retirements invested in these companies. 401(k)s weren't even around in the 50's and 60's and early 70's.

You cannot use the 50's tax rates in todays world. I get so tired of hearing about that suggestion. It's unworkable.

The only candidate that is seriously talking about reducing the debt, the only candidate that has been in economics and trade markets for over 40 years, and the only candidate that has actually built a multi-billion dollar empire...

And all the Bernouts can do is cry foul and say he is "all bark and no bite" when his record obviously proves otherwise especially when you hold it up to the rest of the candidates on the field.

I think this quote from "The Art of the Deal" sums up the Trumpophobes in one paragraph.

" One of the problems when you become successful is that jealousy and envy inevitably follow. There are people - I categorize them as life's losers - who get their sense of accomplishment and achievement from trying to stop others. As far as I'm concerned, if they had any real ability they wouldn't be fighting me, they'd be doing something constructive themselves."

Negativity. All of it. Trump is not the problem. You call him dumb for wanting to reel in the debt but you same people, all of us, voted for the ones who put us there. I mean, can the GOP not get a break? All the DNC and MSM have done is replace Bush with Trump to blame.

NO other candidate, except Paul and Kasich have touched on this. Bernie and Hillary are not offering balanced budgets. Bernie himself said expect more taxes.

I want someone who will say they will try. Who cares if it does not work fully? I hear the MSM asking him if he got rid of wasteful spending he would still no balance. SO WHAT! It is a start. Once it starts it can snowball.

Right now the GOP and DNC have thrown it ALL at Trump. Race issues. Female issues. Immigration issues. His rallies. Preaching hate. Make him a xenophone...etc..etc..etc..he is still here and rising nationally in the polls. He is also even in some poll in Wisconsin but they do not report the others. At the end of April Cruz will lost the chance to catch up. There is nothing else to throw at him. Nothing else to come up in the race to November so whoever he will race against will have no ammo so it will get ugly.

a reply to: xuenchen

No it can't be done in 8 years, well unless we just announce we will never pay it. Obviously that would have pretty serious consequences. That is what will happen eventually though, paying it back is just impossible short of hyper inflating the currency to pay it back.

With the tax cuts he is proposing, I seriously doubt he could find enough savings to eliminate a deficit, let alone pay any debt off.

One thing that trump and well really almost everyone fails to seem to grasp is jobs are disappearing due to automation fast. Those manufacturing jobs he says he is going to bring back from China, Mexico etc, actually they will cease to exist soon enough due to being replaced by robots.

Apple's contract manufacturer is already talking about building a fully automated factory, if they are forced due to tariffs to move back to the USA that is what they will build.

There are many studies that say half of jobs will be gone in the next 20 to 30 years. If there is a major artificial intelligence breakthrough it will be a much higher percentage than that.

I believe we will face more upheaval due to the loss of jobs in the next two decades than has ever occurred before by far. I am scared of the possible outcomes, all of them are likely very unpleasant because people don't adapt to quick radical change well at all. Combine that with governments that don't care about the masses and it will get ugly.

originally posted by: queenofswords
a reply to: MrSpad

The quickest way to end remove the debt over a few decades would be to go back raising taxes to where they were before in the 50s-70s but, that would mean massive tax increases for people and companies. And everybody knows tax increases mean political suicide.

In that scenario, we would have to get rid of 401(k)s and millions of Americans have their retirements invested in these companies. 401(k)s weren't even around in the 50's and 60's and early 70's.

You cannot use the 50's tax rates in todays world. I get so tired of hearing about that suggestion. It's unworkable.

In the UK the tax atthe upper level is already 45% (and it was 50% a couple of years back) - this is on all earnings over £150k. Earnings over £32k get taxed at 40%. It's similar in France. The real rates are actually much higher, as many taxes in the Uk are hidden taxes. In truth the tax rate in the UK is more like 70%. Enjoy the journey because this is your destination too, unless you rid yourselves of the current establishment.

a reply to: n00bUK


The problem with your idyllic solution is gov't is a 'Corporation'. One that in recent years has operated with near zero oversight or culpability.

I'd go the other direction. Zero federal gov't....other than borders, immigration and defense. Our debt is due to the Federal Gov't. Expanding the body that created it is mind-boggling. Those people can't even run the gov't efficiently, never mind a for profit business.....with zero alternative for 'we the people'.

a reply to: matafuchs

You know I feel like I want someone to try to pay it down, but after Obama doubling it, I know it is impossible.

The debt is just way to large, if interest rates ever return to even a slightly healthy level our interest expense jumps by hundreds of billions a year. The fed has completely f'd us along with congress. There is a reason bankruptcy exists, sometimes debts become unpayable, that is where the US and every other 1 st world nation is at. It is all one giant to big to fail situation, but it is going to fail - it simply cannot go on much longer.

Actually I really believe the worlds bankers and by extension politicians know economics as we know it is finished within a decade, and they are stealing as much as they can now before the whole system blows up to live high on the hog and accumulate assets while they can. If they let the common man live our best case scenario is socialism, more likely communism.

Sad state of affairs when people believe this loud mouth liar.

What has ATS become?

a reply to: Willtell

A lot of people would agree with your perspective.

Personally, I think the entrenched powers are having major problems maintaining their coveted positions. Things are not going the way they so confidently planned and the slope has become very slippery for them. I truly think they're in a struggle for their lives, mostly still behind the scenes but becoming more and more apparent if one is paying attention.

It's for that reason only I think Trump was able to even burst upon the political scene in the first place. If their entrenchment was so solid, he never would have made it past first base. To me, it's just another sign the entrenched powers are finding out they're not as protected and as invincible as they once very well were. I don't think they're laughing so much anymore.

We shall find out.

a reply to: xuenchen

...and crush the economy while doing so.

What's better in your estimation:

No national debt & a deep recession

or

Reasonable, sustainable debt-to-GDP ratio and functioning economy?

You can't have both if taxes and tariffs to pay back $19trillion in eight years is the chosen path.

originally posted by: n00bUK

originally posted by: queenofswords
Donald Trump's degree is in economics and he has decades in business and is an iconic negotiator and deal-maker. I would put his expertise up against just about anybody else nowadays. Lots of "teachers" and few "doers" like to act like they know what's what, but he is a doer and at this point, I believe his skill set is what we need in this country.

He's been bankrupt 4 times.

I wish I had a rich mummy and daddy to drag me out of the # everytime I # up.


Or are you depending on them to save him when he #s up, too?

queenofswords explained it well above, but I'll clarify one more thing.

It is not correct to say "He's been bankrupt 4 times.".

Of the many, many endeavors and businesses he has had, 4 of them declared bankruptcy. These were most small, insignificant businesses. They did not work out, for varying reasons, so he did what any businessman would do and declared bankruptcy and dissolved them.

This is NOT the same as an individual or company going totally bankrupt.

This 4 bankruptcy line is something that has been spread around to confuse those who don't understand what it means, as one of many efforts to discredit Trump.

People should have stayed awake in civics class and paid particular attention as to how presidential candidates are selected at nominating conventions, how the electoral college works and who and what actually have the real power during elections.

Putting faith in fair voting and elections is stupid in a corrupt system.

Al Gore won the popular vote in 2000 and we still got Bush. Have you forgotten all those hanging chads?

I doubt if Trump will even make it to the convention. Even if he does, he won't be nominated. Reality sucks, huh?

If Trump get's the nomination, I'll eat my shoes.

a reply to: Swills

who said they believe you?

It is not about getting to zero but going in the right direction. We as a country have to. Cutting spending will not take away Medicare or SS. PP will still be there. But there is a lot of waste and fraud.

Why would we as a country not want to cut our spending? That waste could go to better things.

originally posted by: UKTruth

originally posted by: dashen
How? Can the usa even declare bankruptcy?
Will he turn the whole state of new jersey into a mega trump taj mahal?

If it came to the US declaring bankruptcy, which is possible, then the US would officially become slaves to the banking community, with debt upon debt loaded on top of its citizens until defaults are a certainty followed by seizure of assets and more debt. Read Greece. I think that is a long way off but possible on the current trajectory.

Just focusing on it and making it a policy platform is a good thing - but substance would be nice. Eight years means $2.5trillion a year...

The US government can't declare bankruptcy that's silly. And US debt isn't owned by banks it's owned by regular people that buy bonds. And of course benifit's such as social security. None of these can be released through bankruptcy what they do is issue more bonds to cover the ones already sold. If US defaulted on its bonds the world economy would self distruct all stockmarkets world wide would crash.

originally posted by: n00bUK

originally posted by: queenofswords
Donald Trump's degree is in economics and he has decades in business and is an iconic negotiator and deal-maker. I would put his expertise up against just about anybody else nowadays. Lots of "teachers" and few "doers" like to act like they know what's what, but he is a doer and at this point, I believe his skill set is what we need in this country.

He's been bankrupt 4 times.

I wish I had a rich mummy and daddy to drag me out of the # everytime I # up.


Or are you depending on them to save him when he #s up, too?

Show me where it says Donald Trump filed for bankruptcy.....I bet you cant.

He has never been bankrupted. Four out of his hundreds of businesses went belly up. Thats how it goes when you are a entrepreneur/capitalist. Not all ventures are going to work out.

Stop trolling.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAaaa!! Twenty...*gasp* Six... *tries to breathe* TRILLION...in 8 years...?

Did he say "April Fools!" after?





No??

Oh...

a reply to: n00bUK

Four of his business filed for protection. He did not personally declare bankruptcy. It happened to a lot of people when Atlantic City went belly up. Nobody talks about that though.

Also, he started his empire with a loan from his dad he paid back. He did what he has done on his own. Inheriting money is not illegal and he actually inherited it after his bankruptcy.....

originally posted by: matafuchs
a reply to: Swills

who said they believe you?

It is not about getting to zero but going in the right direction. We as a country have to. Cutting spending will not take away Medicare or SS. PP will still be there. But there is a lot of waste and fraud.

Why would we as a country not want to cut our spending? That waste could go to better things.

Actually you would not want zero some debt is needed. The government takes in about 3.8 trillion a year. You could zero it out in 8 years but think of all the services that would stop not to mention the impact it would have on savings. The government would have to stop issuing bonds for 8 years that alone would have a huge impact on saving.

a reply to: matafuchs

Please explain the target number you would like to reach. What is the relationship between this number and the total number of dollars in circulation? How does increasing or decreasing this number effect the total financial potential of the world wide "free market?"

When you can conceptualize and understand those factors, you will understand the "national debt."

a reply to: Swills

how is Bernie going to fix it?