VOA: IMF says US needs to tackle debt; USA Today: Ballooning U.S. budget deficit is killing the American dream; COGwriter: Debt will be part of the USA’s worst nightmare
(Unsplash photo)
Voice of America reported:
IMF says US needs to tackle debt despite robust growth
June 27, 2024
The International Monetary Fund on Thursday called on the U.S. to raise taxes to curb rising debt levels while applauding “robust, dynamic” growth in the world’s largest economy and progress toward bringing inflation under control.
The IMF said in a closing statement for its “Article IV” review of U.S. economic policies that high deficits and debt “create a growing risk to the U.S. and global economy, potentially feeding into higher fiscal financing costs and a growing risk to the smooth rollover of maturing obligations.”
The IMF’s statement slightly revised down its 2024 U.S. GDP growth forecast to 2.6% from the 2.7% forecast in the global lender’s World Economic Outlook in April. …
the IMF chided Washington for rising deficits that, if continued, would bring the U.S. debt-to-GDP ratio to a concerning level of 140% by the end of the decade. The IMF measure includes Social Security pension and Medicare health care obligations.
“Such high deficits and debt create a growing risk to the U.S. and global economy, potentially feeding into higher fiscal financing costs and a growing risk to the smooth rollover of maturing obligations,” the Fund said.
The fund said the U.S. also should reform entitlement programs, cuts that Biden and Republican rival Donald Trump have both vowed not to pursue, and raise the threshold for eligibility for the Earned Income Tax Credit for workers without children.
Georgieva said the fund was trying to present a policy path for the U.S. “that in our view would serve the economy and its people well,” as it would for any IMF member country.
With the U.S. economy strong, it was a “good time” for the U.S. to consolidate its fiscal position, she said, adding: “It is in good times where you can do more to prepare yourself for risks in the future.” https://www.voanews.com/a/imf-says-us-needs-to-tackle-debt-despite-robust-growth-/7676503.html
Yes, deficits should be cut and savings built up when the economy is growing–yet the USA has not done that.
This will cause major problems.
USA Today posted the following:
Ballooning U.S. budget deficit is killing the American dream
June 27, 2024
The government’s deficit problem is creating an income problem for Americans, economists warn.
Last week, the Congressional Budget Office raised its estimate for the government deficit this year by a whopping 27%, or $408 billion over its February forecast, to $1.9 trillion.
Paying for that debt can divert money away from private investment, which in turn may dampen wage growth, economists say.
“The exploding debt could cause as much as a 10% reduction in wage income within 30 years,” said Kent Smetters, a University of Pennsylvania Wharton School professor and faculty director of the Penn Wharton Budget Model. ,,,
To pay for increasing spending, the government issues debt like Treasuries and bonds with higher interest rates to attract investors. When investors put money into government debt, they do so at the expense of more productive private investments – what economists refer to as the “crowding out effect.” …
CBO expects federal debt held by the public to rise from 99% of gross domestic product in 2024 to 122% in 2034, surpassing the peak of 106% reached in 1946, immediately following World War II. https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2024/06/27/us-budget-deficit-cuts-incomes/74211526007/
Well, that USA Today article is overly optimistic. Debt will be part of the USA’s worst nightmare.
Consider the following from last fall:
The United States Deficit Road To Ruin
According to the U.S. Treasury, year-end data from September 2023 show that the deficit for the full year 2023 was $1.7 trillion, $320 billion higher than the prior year’s deficit. As a percentage of GDP, the deficit was 6.3%, an increase from 5.4% in FY 2022. This means that the United States will likely post the worst GDP growth excluding debt increases since 1929 …
The United States government is unable to spend less than 22.8% of GDP, and no tax revenue measure can eliminate the deficit. Those who think that taxing the rich would eliminate the deficit should ask how the government would collect $1.7 trillion in additional taxes per year and every year, no matter what the growth of the economy is.
With $33.6 trillion of public debt and the administration’s own estimate of the accumulated deficit for 2023–2022, public debt is going to soar by $14 trillion. No tax measure can eliminate that problem.
Deficits are always a spending problem. 10/23/23 https://www.zerohedge.com/political/united-states-deficit-road-ruin
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, a key barometer for mortgage rates, auto loans and student debt, rose back above 5% on Monday. …
Most of the recent jump in Treasury yields is due to a so-called term premium, said Andrew Hunter, deputy chief U.S. economist at Capital Economics.
Basically, investors are demanding a higher return to lend their money to the U.S. government — in this case, for 10 years. One reason: Investors seem skittish about rising U.S. government debt, Hunter said. Generally, investors demand a higher return if they perceive a greater risk of the government’s inability to pay back debt in the future.
The rapid rise in Treasury yields may “accelerate an already weakening economic picture that is masked by higher rates,” said Tony Dwyer, chief market strategist Canaccord Genuity Group, in a Monday note. https://www.cnbc.com/2023/10/23/the-10-year-treasury-tops-5percent-again-heres-what-that-means-for-you.html
The USA is the most indebted nation in the history of humanity. Rising interest rates increase the debt and look to one day result in a debt spiral that will be a factor in the elimination of the USA!
This increasing of debt cannot go on forever.
Even when he was President of the United States, Barack Obama said the levels of debt his Administration oversaw was “unsustainable,” yet the debt keeps going up.
Notice the following levels of official US debt:
- January 20, 2009, $10,626,877,048,913.08, date Obama-Biden Administration inaugurated.
- January 19, 2017, $19,944,429,217,106.77, date Obama-Biden leave office, replaced the next day by Trump-Pence.
- January 19, 2021, $27,752,835,868,445.35, the date Trump-Pence leave office, replaced the next day by Biden-Harris.
- January 19, 2024, $34,072,342,032,939.15, after 3 years of the Biden-Harris Administration (see also https://fiscaldata.treasury.gov/datasets/debt-to-the-penny/debt-to-the-penny)
And it has gone up hundreds of billions more since. As of Wednesday, the official US debt was $34,724,689,266,963.11.
Official US debt nearly doubled under the Obama-Biden Administration. It also greatly increased by about the same amount in only four years under the Trump-Pence Administration. Debt went up nearly $10 trillion in less than four years of the Biden-Harris Administration and is expected to increase greatly.
The Bible warns about debt and disobedience:
43 The alien who is among you shall rise higher and higher above you, and you shall come down lower and lower. 44 He shall lend to you, but you shall not lend to him; he shall be the head, and you shall be the tail. 45 Moreover all these curses shall come upon you and pursue and overtake you, until you are destroyed…47 “Because you did not serve the LORD your God with joy and gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything, 48 therefore you shall serve your enemies, whom the LORD will send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything; and He will put a yoke of iron on your neck until He has destroyed you. 49 The LORD will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flies, a nation whose language you will not understand, 50 a nation of fierce countenance, which does not respect the elderly nor show favor to the young. 51 And they shall eat the increase of your livestock and the produce of your land, until you are destroyed; they shall not leave you grain or new wine or oil, or the increase of your cattle or the offspring of your flocks, until they have destroyed you. 52 They shall besiege you at all your gates until your high and fortified walls, in which you trust, come down throughout all your land; and they shall besiege you at all your gates throughout all your land which the LORD your God has given you (Deuteronomy 28:43-45,47-52).
7 The rich rules over the poor, And the borrower is servant to the lender. (Proverbs 22:7)
13 And the Lord said, “Because they have forsaken My law which I set before them, and have not obeyed My voice, nor walked according to it, 14 but they have walked according to the dictates of their own hearts…16 I will scatter them also among the Gentiles, whom neither they nor their fathers have known. And I will send a sword after them until I have consumed them.” (Jeremiah 9:13,14a,16)
12 One-third of you shall die of the pestilence, and be consumed with famine in your midst; and one-third shall fall by the sword all around you; and I will scatter another third to all the winds, and I will draw out a sword after them. (Ezekiel 5:12)
Now, you may wish to read and re-read something that the prophet Habakkuk was inspired to write over 2600 years ago:
3 For the vision is yet for an appointed time; But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; Because it will surely come, It will not tarry…5 Indeed, because he transgresses by wine, He is a proud man… 6 “Will not all these take up a proverb against him, And a taunting riddle against him, and say, ‘Woe to him who increases What is not his–how long? And to him who loads himself with many pledges’? 7 Will not your creditors rise up suddenly? Will they not awaken who oppress you? And you will become their booty. 8 Because you have plundered many nations, All the remnant of the people shall plunder you. Because of men’s blood And the violence of the land and the city, And of all who dwell in it. (Habakkuk 2:3,5,6-8).
9 “Woe to him who covets evil gain for his house, That he may set his nest on high, That he may be delivered from the power of disaster! 10 You give shameful counsel to your house, Cutting off many peoples, And sin against your soul. 11 For the stone will cry out from the wall, And the beam from the timbers will answer it. (Habakkuk 2:9-11)
The above prophecy will be fulfilled at the time of the end (cf. “The message was true, but the appointed time was long…in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come,” Daniel 10:1,14). Daniel 8:19, 11:27,29,35 use the same Hebrew term for “appointed time” as Habakkuk 2:3, while Daniel 10, using a different term, ties the latter days to the time in Daniel 8:19. Habakkuk 2 was not fulfilled in its entirety anciently.
And that is not a new idea. The Dead Sea Scrolls discovered last century were helpful in various ways, and included something related to Habakkuk.
Dead Sea Scrolls’ Commentary on Habakkuk
The Dead Sea scrolls have the following in a Commentary on Habakkuk from roughly 2000 years ago. The following was translated in the 1950s by F.F. Bruce:
God commanded Habakkuk to write the things that were coming upon the last generation, but the fulfilment of the epoch he did not make known to him. (1Q p Hab. vii 1-5)
While ancient commentaries like this are NOT scripture, this particular one shows that those who understood the Hebrew language, around 2000 years ago, believed that Habakkuk’s words had NOT been fulfilled then and were for the time of the end.
As far as to who these passages in Habakkuk are directed to in the end, it makes little sense that these verses in Habakkuk 2 would be directed towards the modern nation of Israel as it does not have enemy creditors. It must be a nation or group of nations with some prominence at the appointed time of the end. As far as “violence of the land” as a contributing factor, this would seem to include crime, military missions, and perhaps riots/civil unrest, but might it also include promotion of violent sports? Is the USA government not giving shameful counsel regarding matters such as homosexuality and abortion?
Since the USA is the most indebted nation of all time, and since the tiny nation of Israel does not have enemy creditors, it is logical that the prophecy in Habakkuk is directed towards the USA.
And the timing?
Well, years before I saw the Dead Sea document, I concluded that because Habakkuk 2 states it is for the appointed time of the end, that it pertained to our current generation.
After Jesus warned about the beginning of sorrows (Matthew 24:4-8), other problems (Matthew 24:9-13), the great tribulation (Matthew 24:21-22), His return (Matthew 24:29-31), etc. He stated:
32 “Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. 33 So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near — at the doors! 34 Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. (Matthew 24:32-35)
The sorrows have begun, we are in that GENERATION.
In light of that, consider that the Book of Proverbs teaches:
12 There is a generation that is pure in its own eyes,
Yet is not washed from its filthiness.
13 There is a generation — oh, how lofty are their eyes!
And their eyelids are lifted up.
14 There is a generation whose teeth are like swords,
And whose fangs are like knives,
To devour the poor from off the earth,
And the needy from among men.15 The leech has two daughters —
Give and Give!There are three things that are never satisfied,
Four never say, “Enough!”: (Proverbs 30:12-15)
It appears that for many USA politicians the debt is never enough.
This will not end well for the USA.
My book, Biden-Harris: Prophecies and Destruction, has the following:
Furthermore, the Bible warns against the type of moral decline that is occurring in the U.S.A.:
12 Therefore thus says the Holy One of Israel: “Because you despise this word, And trust in oppression and perversity, And rely on them, 13 Therefore this iniquity shall be to you Like a breach ready to fall, A bulge in a high wall, Whose breaking comes suddenly, in an instant. (Isaiah 30:12-13)
But how can this happen to the U.S.A.? It will likely happen with a combination of events. Notice:
5 “Moreover the multitude of your foes Shall be like fine dust, And the multitude of the terrible ones Like chaff that passes away; Yes, it shall be in an instant, suddenly. 6 You will be punished by the Lord of hosts with thunder and earthquake and great noise, With storm and tempest and the flame of devouring fire. (Isaiah 29:5-6)
The debt situation of the U.S.A. is putting it at risk of being unable to recover should it be hit by weather problems, terrorist acts, war, riots, solar flares, severe earthquakes, civil unrest, devastation of their genetically-modified food supplies, food shortages, and/or various pestilences–an intensity of “sorrows” such as Jesus discussed in Matthew 24:4-8 leading up to the time of the Great Tribulation. Political issues, climate change, trade policies, communication’s deals, and other events are pushing the U.S.A. to a position that will encourage its takeover someday. Disasters, especially if there is an ElectroMagnetic Pulse (EMP) attack, a severe solar flare storm, devastating hurricane (s) something like a massive volcanic eruption and/or massive earthquake could be part of a so-called “perfect storm” of events that could set up the U.S.A. for destruction.
Getting back to the IMF, its point that the USA should now be reducing its debt is correct. Yet, it is not. When enough disasters hit it, foreign creditors are going to conclude that since the USA could not truly pay its debt when it was doing well, there is no way it will pay them when his with multiple disasters–Habakkuk 2:6-8 will be fulfilled!
Related to USA debt, we put together the following video:
And the Debt Goes On …
On June 3, 2023, US President Joe Biden signed a bill to increase the official debt-ceiling of the United States. According to the US Treasury the “ceiling” has been changed, increased, or delayed 78 other times. The official debt has nearly tripled since the Obama-Biden Administration. The official debt increased about $2 trillion per year under Donald Trump’s Administration and has done close to that in the Joe Biden Administration. While the USA has been able to increase debt with limited consequences (like inflation) so far, does the Bible show this can end in destruction? What did God warn about debt through the prophet Habakkuk? Is getting into high amounts of debt a blessing or curse according to the Bible? Do Democrats or Republicans currently have a plan that will now be implemented to pay off the debt? Has the USA been functioning as an international “leech” consistent with statements in the Book of Proverbs? Does the Bible say it is wicked to borrow money you do really intend to repay? Steve Dupuie and Dr. Thiel cover these matters.
Here is a link to our video: And the Debt Goes On …
Perhaps it should be pointed out that the old Radio Church of God did teach that Habakkuk 1 had future fulfillment and tied it in with Isaiah 10 (Hoeh H. The Race Question. Plain Truth, July 1957 p. 22)–which WCG tied in with the coming destruction of the USA.
Furthermore, the old Worldwide Church of God did clearly teach that Habakkuk 2 had future application:
Habakkuk … God also said that this vision was to be written for our benefit today. … (Habakkuk 2:3). God showed Habakkuk that He will punish all the unrighteous at the end-time. … (Habukkuk 2:8, 10, 16-17) (Armstrong HW, editor in chief. THE MINOR PROPHETS SPEAK TO US! Youth Bible Lessons, Level 7, Lesson 9, 1986, p. 4)
So, yes, the old WCG understood that Habakkuk 2 was prophetic for the end time–not that it was fully fulfilled thousands of years ago (which many in certain COGs wrongly believe).
On the other hand, some will discount Habakkuk because it is prophetic.
Do you believe the words that God inspired Habakkuk to write? If so, do you really understand what is going to happen to the USA, UK, and their Anglo-descended allies relatively soon?
There is also a YouTube video related to this: Was USA debt and destruction predicted 2,600 years ago?
The days of the USA are numbered and are almost up.
Do NOT think that whoever may win the presidential election in 2024 will fix the debt matter.
The rising USA debt cannot continue indefinitely–there is a major price to pay.
Some items of possibly related interest may include:
Might the U.S.A. Be Gone in 2028? Could the USA be gone by the end of 2028 or earlier? There is a tradition attributed to the Hebrew prophet Elijah that humanity had 6,000 years to live before being replaced by God’s Kingdom. There are scriptures, writings in the Talmud, early Christian teachings that support this. Also, even certain Hindu writings support it. Here is a link to a related video: Is the USA prophesied to be destroyed by 2028? In Spanish: Seran los Estados Unidos Destruidos en el 2028?
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2024, 2025, or 2026? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede la Gran Tribulación comenzar en el 2020 o 2021? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? A related video is: Great Tribulation: 2026 or 2027? A shorter video is: Tribulation in 2024? Here is a video in the Spanish language: Es El 2021 el año de La Gran Tribulación o el Grande Reseteo Financiero.USA in Prophecy: The Strongest Fortresses Can you point to scriptures, like Daniel 11:39, that point to the USA in the 21st century? This article does. Two related sermon are available: Identifying the USA and its Destruction in Prophecy and Do these 7 prophesies point to the end of the USA?
Who is the King of the West? Why is there no Final End-Time King of the West in Bible Prophecy? Is the United States the King of the West? Here is a version in the Spanish language: ¿Quién es el Rey del Occidente? ¿Por qué no hay un Rey del Occidente en la profecía del tiempo del fin? A related sermon is also available: The Bible, the USA, and the King of the West.Is God Calling You? This booklet discusses topics including calling, election, and selection. If God is calling you, how will you respond? Here is are links to related sermons: Christian Election: Is God Calling YOU? and Predestination and Your Selection. A short animation is also available: Is God Calling You?
Spiritual Samaritans: Old and New Who were the Samaritans? Do the represent true Christianity or something else? Here is a link to a related sermon: USA in Prophecy: Samaria.
There is a Place of Safety for the Philadelphians. Why it May Be Near Petra This article discusses a biblical ‘place of safety,’ Zephaniah 2 to ‘gather together,’ and includes quotes from the Bible and Herbert W. Armstrong on fleeing to a place–thus, there is a biblically supported alternative to the rapture theory. Two sermon-length videos of related interest are available Physical Protection During the Great Tribulation and Might Petra be the Place of Safety? Here are two related items in the Spanish language: Hay un lugar de seguridad para los Filadelfinos. ¿Puede ser Petra? and Existe un Lugar de Seguridad.
Lost Tribes and Prophecies: What will happen to Australia, the British Isles, Canada, Europe, New Zealand and the United States of America? Where did those people come from? Can you totally rely on DNA? Do you really know what will happen to Europe and the English-speaking peoples? What about the peoples of Africa, Asia, South America, and the islands? This free online book provides scriptural, scientific, historical references, and commentary to address those matters. Here are links to related sermons: Lost tribes, the Bible, and DNA; Lost tribes, prophecies, and identifications; 11 Tribes, 144,000, and Multitudes; Israel, Jeremiah, Tea Tephi, and British Royalty; Gentile European Beast; Royal Succession, Samaria, and Prophecies; Asia, Islands, Latin America, Africa, and Armageddon; When Will the End of the Age Come?; Rise of the Prophesied King of the North; Christian Persecution from the Beast; WWIII and the Coming New World Order; and Woes, WWIV, and the Good News of the Kingdom of God.
Biden-Harris: Prophecies and Destruction Can the USA survive two full presidential terms? In what ways are Joe Biden and Kamala Harris apocalyptic? This book has hundreds of prophecies and scriptures to provide details. A Kindle version is also available and you do not need an actual Kindle device to read it. Why? Amazon will allow you to download it to almost any device: Please click HERE to download one of Amazon s Free Reader Apps. After you go to your free Kindle reader app (or if you already have one or a Kindle), you can go to: Biden-Harris: Prophecies and Destruction (Kindle) to get the book in seconds.
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