Where is ‘King of Debt’ Trump when we need him on the national debt?

In 2016, then Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump arrogantly proclaimed that he was the “ King of Debt ,” and boasted that he could eliminate the then $19 trillion national debt in eight years — presuming, as he did, that he would have two consecutive terms in office.

Ten years later, the Republican president and the Republican Congress have allowed the national debt to exceed $40 trillion . That debt is roughly 120 percent of our Gross Domestic Product, or GDP.

Let those simple facts to sink in: It is more than $230,000 in debt for every taxpayer.

A modest level of debt is not harmful. In fact, it’s necessary for a government’s capital investments and survival in times of crises, like the dot-com bubble or the COVID pandemic. But when the crisis passes or the investment pays off, a responsible and reliable government then pays the debt down while reinvesting in its future.

When the government fails to act responsibly in robust times, a nation’s economic strength is slowly and surreptitiously diminished. It is not, however, unpredictable. The danger is that unless leaders responsibly focus attention on the issue and honestly recommend steps to reduce the deficit, economic damage occurs in the shadows. It’s like termites eating away at a building. Those inside don’t know that the building is weakening until it is too late. Currently, the termites are embedded in the building, and they are eating the foundation at an alarming pace.

When Sen. Jack Danforth (R-Mo.), the founder of my organization, and Sen. Bob Kerrey (D-Neb.) chaired the Bipartisan Commission on Entitlement and Tax Reform in 1994, they emphasized then that “America is at a fiscal crossroads,” and failure to take action would “threaten the financial future of our children and our nation.”

At the end of fiscal 1994, the national debt was $4.6 trillion. The U.S. is now well beyond responsible management of the debt, and my party has lost its willingness to recommend the hard choices needed to control it.

The Committee for a Responsible Budget estimates that the national debt increased by $8.4 trillion in President Trump’s first term. It increased roughly the same amount under former President Joe Biden. So far, it has increased about half that amount in under 20 months of Trump’s second term.

Truly, neither party has been willing to make responsible decisions about addressing runaway debt. But it is the Republican majorities in Congress and a Republican president who have controlled the Executive and both houses of Congress in President Trump’s second term. And yet, the debt accumulation has not slowed at all. In fact, it has only increased with the “King of Debt” at the helm. And that is unforgivable.

Last month, the Wall Street Journal blamed both parties’ spending for the ballooning debt. The editors argue that revenue has increased significantly while spending has metastasized and that the need to cut spending to tame the deficit is simply unavoidable.

The fact is that when asked, the president expresses concern about the national debt and confidence that he can eliminate it on one hand, yet, on the other hand, endorses budgets and takes executive actions that do just the opposite. He repeatedly emphasizes that on the one hand we need to spend significantly more on defense, but on the other hand, proceed with cutting revenues in order to stimulate growth. He then pursues foreign and security policies that fail to achieve the strategic aims of the country, while increasing the national debt exponentially.

The math just doesn’t add up. What is accurate is that the people of America are paying for the massive increases in spending without receiving any positive results.

Entitlement spending growth, increased defense costs and rising interest payments are the driving forces pushing annual deficits sky high and growing national debt. There is no magic pill that will reduce that spending without courage and bipartisan decisions embraced by the nation’s leaders. That’s the price of leadership and one thing the country can afford.

In the August 1994 report , the former senators said that if we did nothing, “Americans 10, 15 and 20 years from now will ask why we had so little foresight.” As the national debt crosses the inconceivable $40 trillion mark, Americans should be asking this question and demanding action.

Where’s the “King of Debt” when the country needs him?

Marc Racicot is the national co-chairman of Our Republican Legacy . He is a former governor of Montana and chair of the Republican National Committee.