The $40 Trillion Problem Washington Won’t Talk About

America’s national debt has climbed past $40 trillion and persistent deficits are putting upward pressure on long-term interest rates. Economists including Natasha Sarin of the Yale Budget Lab argue that heavier government borrowing ultimately filters through to households in the form of higher mortgages, car loans and other financing costs. Former House Speaker Paul Ryan says the country can still change course, but doing so will require confronting politically difficult questions around entitlement spending, taxes and the future of Social Security before markets force Washington to act. (Source: Bloomberg)