David Perdue

Investing in America: Transforming the Tax Code, Tackling the Debt

Ben White, Maya MacGuineas, David Perdue, Mark Warner, Mark Weinberger

Panelists warn that the U.S. federal debt has reached post-World War II highs, with mandatory spending consuming 70% of the budget and interest costs poised to exceed $1 trillion annually without structural reform. Despite dire projections from the Congressional Budget Office, 2016 presidential candidates on both sides have proposed tax cuts or spending expansions lacking credible offsetting mechanisms, driven by political gridlock and a broken federal budget process. Experts advocate for a "grand bargain" model similar to Simpson-Bowles, urging immediate action on international tax reform and entitlement adjustments to preserve the dollar's status as the global reserve currency.