Explain how the United States federal government debt grew over time? Look all the way back to 1776 for the debt growth. Explain why. To reduce the national debt, there must be the consensus about raising taxes (revenue), reducing spending, or both simultaneously. If taxes increase, your net pay will decline, leaving you with less disposable income. Are you more of a fiscal conservative (the federal government should spend less) or a fiscal liberal (the federal government should spend more)? Identify the federal budget items that you would spend more or less on in the budget. Explain why. How does the United States debt compare globally to other nations? Identify why some other nations have less debt than the United States. Explain why. Let’s say that you’re a 20-something-year-old college student. Your campus is three hours away from your hometown. Every time you return home – about three times per semester – you notice that there’s some delay in traffic due to the deteriorating interstate highway or bridge. To what extent should the federal government use tax dollars to repair the roads? The mandatory spending items (e.g. Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security) are increasing more rapidly than the discretionary spending portion of the budget. What reforms would you propose in order to constrain government spending and reduce the national debt? (The increases to Social Security are not supposed to be included in the U.S. national debt. The unfunded liability (future payments) for Social Security is supposedly held in the Social Security Trust Fund.) Several years ago, there was a lot of discussion about a balanced budget amendment. The amendment would require that the president submit a budget in which expenditures don’t exceed revenues and that Congress approve it. To what extent would this be a good course of action to take?