Is the United States Bankrupt?

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Is the United States bankrupt? Many would scoff at this notion. Others would argue that financial

implosion is just around the corner. This paper explores these views from both partial and general

equilibrium perspectives. It concludes that countries can go broke, that the United States is going

broke, that remaining open to foreign investment can help stave off bankruptcy, but that radical

reform of U.S. fiscal institutions is essential to secure the nation’s economic future. The paper

offers three policies to eliminate the nation’s enormous fiscal gap and avert bankruptcy: a retail

sales tax, personalized Social Security, and a globally budgeted universal healthcare system.

http://research.stlouisfed.org/publication...7/Kotlikoff.pdf