The Economy & The Deficit

Published: October 17, 2016

The third and final video of the series discusses the important relationship between the state of the economy and the deficit. When the economy goes into a recession, the deficit will increase; whereas when the economy booms, a surplus will occur. If the economy is performing well, and performing at or above its full potential, there are many positive outcomes for individual workers and for reducing the federal deficit.

Discussion Question

1. Discuss some of the factors that will contribute to the dramatic increase in public debt over the next few decades?
   • Growth of Medicare
   • Growth of Social Security
   • Revenue will not grow along with spending in general—we won’t be able to cover the costs.