National debt is political tool, not life or death for U.S.
In a recent Letter to the Editor, a reader tried to “both sides” the issue of the rising national debt, and I just wanna say that if you watch it closely, the national debt often rises under Republican administrations and lowers under Democratic ones. Bill Clinton even managed to have surpluses during his last term.
It’s very easy to put the blame for a rising debt on welfare and COVID programs, but the reader failed to mention that tax breaks for the wealthy often cause the debt to skyrocket.
The national debt isn’t life or death as folks make it out to be. America isn’t a college freshman being reckless with a credit card and China won’t foreclose on Mt. Rushmore. We’re a nation with almost 300 years of history, and we’ll have plenty of time to pay our dues.
The national debt is only useful as a political tool for the minority party to guilt the majority into not enacting the policies they were elected to make happen.
AMRAM GAINER, ATLANTA
Consider Haley-Scott as youthful middle-ground ticket
As a progressive, I find conservative positions on the environment, racial inequities, education, healthcare, gun control, taxation and economic disparities pretty indefensible.
I also refuse to believe that this great country could elect to the highest office in the land a person who intentionally tried to overthrow our democracy.
That said, if the GOP would ever wake up and realize that a Nikki Haley-Tim Scott ticket could pull a significant number of voters into what would appear as a youthful middle-ground camp to many – perhaps millions -- it could probably win handily.
But we all know that the GOP, renowned for its misogyny and racial inequities, would never do that.
BOB DICKINSON, ALPHARETTA
