Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

BY SEN. MARSHA BLACKBURN
In history books and mythology, Greece is revered as the birthplace of democracy. The world’s most brilliant visionaries looked to Greece as a model for philosophy, culture, and leadership. I’m sure those great thinkers never anticipated Greece’s fall from grace almost 10 years ago, its economy the victim of rapid spending and an unsustainable debt burden. While different factors are at play in our own country, we cannot ignore the similarities between Washington’s out of control spending and this modern-day Greek tragedy. Debt destroyed what was once a model nation. Will the Biden administration’s latest reckless tax-and-spending spree force the United States to suffer the same fate?
It’s no secret — America’s debt burden is growing. From President George Washington to President George W. Bush, the United States accumulated $10.6 trillion in debt. Under the Obama-Biden administration, that debt doubled. Despite warnings from economists that all debt comes with consequences, Democrats have only ramped up their bad spending habits.
To put things in perspective, debt in most advanced countries is on the rise, but the United States’s debt problem is unmatched. Ours is the only country whose debt-to-GDP ratio is projected to grow after 2021. When compared to countries like Germany, France, Italy, or the UK, our debt ratio reflects an unprecedented spike. What’s the problem with this increase? A rising debt ratio quickly translates into rising costs and falling wages.
In the United States, we already see the cracks forming in our economy: prices are rising and businesses are unable to fill job openings. But these warning signs haven’t slowed down the left’s spending spree. Democrats have consistently avoided acknowledging the simple truth that when you spend more than you have, someone has to pay the balance. They know this, and still, Biden and his flock of leftist radicals are spending taxpayer dollars faster than they can rip them from our pocketbooks. Nancy Pelosi is even holding her own party’s $1.2 trillion infrastructure plan hostage until the Senate also passes her $3.5 trillion dollar wishlist. Joe Biden thinks his political maneuvering can blind the American people, but Tennesseans know better. We know that refusing to discuss where the money is coming from isn’t a clever way to avoid paying our tab. Every dollar the government spends comes with a catch. Right now, the United States is already over $28 trillion in debt. For any child or grandchild born this year, their share of the national debt is going to be about $85,000. As Democrats rack up more favors for their radical friends, Americans will foot the bill. Ultimately, in this time of crisis, we must learn from Greece’s mistakes. We are the shining “city upon a hill,” and that is precisely how we should act. It’s time Joe Biden and Democrat lawmakers stop burdening future generations with debt and instead focused their political willpower on strengthening the nation our children and grandchildren will one day inherit.
(Sen. Marsha Blackburn represents Tennessee in the U.S. Senate.)