B2IshaniResearchNotebook

Sheffey, Ayelet. “The US Could Be 4 Months Away from a Potentially Disastrous Debt-Ceiling Breach, but Nobody’s Negotiating over How to Fix It.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 13 Mar. 2023, https://www.businessinsider.com/when-will-us-reach-debt-ceiling-deadline-congress-negotiating-default-2023-3#:~:text=The%20Congressional%20Budget%20Office%20estimated%20last%20month%20that,to%20pay%20off%20the%20expenses%20it%27s%20already%20approved. 

Direct Quote: As Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has repeatedly warned, failing to raise the ceiling would be catastrophic and unprecedented, but rather than working with Democrats to quickly avoid those consequences, GOP lawmakers have expressed their intent to use the ceiling as leverage to achieve their own priorities — particularly in the form of major spending cuts.

Summary/My Interpretation: Although almost everyone agrees that hitting the debt ceiling would be catastrophic for the US, some believe that this is still a possibility. More specifically in recent months it has been harder to raise the debt ceiling since the GOP party has gained a majority in the house and plans to use the debt ceiling as a bargaining tool. This is problematic because if a deal isn’t reached between the two parties, the US may breach the debt ceiling. 
How I Plan To Use This In My Project: One of the most commonly cited arguments against solving the debt crisis is asserting that the US would never breach the debt ceiling. Although it is true that most people in the US would want to avoid hitting the debt ceiling at all costs, this is still a possibility. I plan to use this article to explain how hitting the debt ceiling would not be an active decision made by lawmakers but rather it would be a consequence of gridlock between the two parties.

Simon:

• Electric vs Traditional vehicles
• Comparing cost, environmental impacts, driving range, facilities, and AI driving

Jason:

• Topic: Chess and academics
• Great for critical thinking skills
• Question: Can chess help improve students’ academics?
• Proven to increase math/reading scores

Mitchell, Matthew D. “The United States’ Debt Crisis: Far from Solved.” Mercatus Center, Mercatus Center, 21 Aug. 2014, https://www.mercatus.org/research/policy-briefs/united-states-debt-crisis-far-solved. 

Direct Quote: There is ample academic evidence that higher debt levels slow economic growth. While there have been challenges to Harvard University economists Carmen Reinhart and Kenneth Rogoff’s landmark 2010 paper18—which demonstrated that countries with debt-to-GDP ratios higher than 90 percent have notably lower economic growth—their essential finding of the adverse impact of high indebtedness on growth has been supported by studies from the European Central Bank,19 the International Monetary Fund,20 and the Bank for International Settlements,21 among others.22 Research has also shown that high levels of debt inhibit economic competitiveness.

Summary/My Interpretation: One of the most harmful impacts of the national debt is its unique ability to impede economic growth. Since the debt not only crowds out the private sector but simultaneously draws funds away from other programs, it creates a world in which nations can’t grow at their full potential. Overall this is bad for the middle class as economic growth has been shown to improve overall quality of life. 

How I Will Use This In My Project: As a whole, this article does a good job at explaining how the debt impedes economic growth. I hope to use this source as a way to not only explain this chain of events but I also hope to extrapolate the paper’s findings to how they will affect the middle class.

Bomgardner, Steven. “The Fiscal & Economic Impact of the National Debt.” Peter G. Peterson Foundation, Peter G. Peterson Foundation, 4 Sept. 2022, https://www.pgpf.org/the-fiscal-and-economic-challenge/fiscal-and-economic-impact. 

Direct Quote: Our fiscal security is also closely linked to our national security and ability to maintain a leading role in the world. As Admiral Mullen, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, put it: “The most significant threat to our national security is our debt.” As the national debt grows, not only are we more beholden to creditors around the globe, but we have fewer resources to invest in strength at home.

Summary/My Interpretation: A consequence of the national debt that is often overlooked is how the deficit affects our national security. The national debt is harmful to security as it not only forces the US to be indebted to foreign powers but also due to the fact that it restricts investment into domestic protection. 

How I Plan To Use This In My Project: This article introduced me to a potential consequence of the national debt that I had not yet considered. I want to explore more in depth how national security is affected by debt. Additionally, I plan to use this narrative as a potential consequence on the middle class.

Bomgardner, Steven. “The Fiscal & Economic Impact of the National Debt.” Peter G. Peterson Foundation, Peter G. Peterson Foundation, 4 Sept. 2022, https://www.pgpf.org/the-fiscal-and-economic-challenge/fiscal-and-economic-impact. 

Direct Quote: Growing debt also has a direct effect on the economic opportunities available to every American. If high levels of debt crowd out private investments in capital goods, workers would have less to use in their jobs, which would translate to lower productivity and, therefore, lower wages. On the other hand, reducing federal borrowing would counter such effects; according to CBO, income per person could increase by as much as $6,300 by 2050 if we were to reduce our debt to 79 percent of the size of the economy by that year.

Summary/My Interpretation: One of the most harmful aspects of the federal debt is the way in which it hinders the nation’s economy. In the US, the debt has been crowding out the private sectors as securities take money out of the system. This is problematic as it means there is less capital in flow, resulting in lower wages than otherwise expected. 

How I Will Use This In My Project: I plan to use this website to further explain the exact process of how growing federal debt can lead to negative impacts on the middle class. Specifically, I want to use the narrative of capital being taken out of the system as a way of explaining how debt directly impacts the working class. Additionally, I also plan to use the last statistic in the quote as it is a concrete figure that estimates the impacts the debt is having.