[War] US: Debt. The Eternal Enemy.

[John Penta]

"Debt. The Eternal Enemy."
3 September 2014
Pres. John Williams
USA
====================
Bang bang smash smash.

Such was the soundtrack of the President's life as Luke approached his
first birthday, now only 4 days away.

Luke had been a quiet baby, but he loved to move, to make noises, to
see what happened when he did things.

Running a country, keeping his son from getting where he
shouldn't...There were a lot of reasons why the Williams family had
considered hiring a nanny to look after Luke during the day,
particularly as Kay took up a schedule that kept her as busy as her
husband.

There were equal reasons why they hadn't, yet, but as the President
watched Luke bang toys together, he found it hard to concentrate on
what was in front of him, a report on the FY2015 budget as it was
shaping up.

Kay was in Chicago for the next week, doing research for the doctorate
she was pursuing (as well as giving speeches and local media
interviews, something John had been surprised to find his wife
enjoying, even if only a little).

So it was just him and the kid, family-wise.

At that point, he made a decision, and picked up his cellphone to text Kay.

LUKE MKNG IT HD 2 FOCUS. FEEL FOR U NOW.

The response was simple:

PAYBACK SUCKS, HUH?

They went on like that for a bit, Then, one of his staffers came in,
carrying some papers.

"Luke treating you alright, sir?"

"Oh, yeah. Just...being loud."

A look of sympathy. This particular staffer had 2 kids of her own,
both grown up a bit.

"Aww. Need help?"

At that moment, John was abundantly happy he'd kept to an informal
tone with his staff.

"Yes, *please*. Also, let Mrs. Rosen know...I've still to clear it
with Kay, but I think that we're going to be looking for a nanny to
take cate of Luke during working hours. I can handle him fine at night
and in the mornings..."

"But you can't be dad and POTUS at once?"

"Exactly. Or at least, I can't concentrate while he's banging stuff."

That got a chuckle.

"Yeah, Cameron and Dylan were the same way. How about I take him off
your hands?"

"I shouldn't. He's my kid, my problem. And besides, it'd be bad to
have me have an employee take care of him."

"You should. This isn't exactly covered in the job description, no,
but I'm waiting for DOE to get back to me with some stuff anyway.
They're going to be a while, and besides, it's more productive than
the alternatives."

"Which are?"

That got a grin. "Sorry, not gonna tell the boss what we do with dead time."

*That* had John laughing. "Good one. Fine, go keep him quieted down for a bit."

Upon reflection, she'd offered, and it wasn't like it was a permanent
thing. Just for an hour, so he could focus.

Nonetheless, he'd confess his sin to the ethics advisor.
---

Debt. Ever since the founding of the Republic, it had been a constant
problem for Presidents.

In some respects, a level of debt was necessary, even desirable - it
helped establish government credit, and provided a safe source of
liquidity to the economy.

High debt, however, was not a good thing, for governments as much as
for families or businesses.

As it was, the US's debt level was high, but not necessarily crushing.
However, measures could be taken to reduce it.

Thus, he began to write, since Luke had left under the watchful eyes
of the staffer who'd agreed to mind him til DOE got back to her.

First off, he decided, it was time for another scrubdown.

Line by line, the Cabinet would go through the budget bills before
they were presented for signing. If Congress wouldn't release the
specifics on earmarks, the White House would, in the ten days allowed
for delay under the Presentment clause.

It didn't mean they wouldn't be *signed*, but it'd make sure
everything was out in the open. And who knew, maybe it'd give
ammunition to fighters for a line-item veto.

Next, there was projected to be a surplus. A small one, not accounted
for in the projections used in assembling the budget months before.

That, he decided, would be used to pay down at least a small part of
government debt. He also made another note: In FY16, at least 80% of
whatever surplus came about would be used to pay down debt.

The objective would be simple: Reduce US debt so that it was no more
than 50% of GDP. How long that would take?

That he had no clue about.
---
Actions:
1. Cabinet to release the specifics of earmarks in final funding bills
as they arrive at the White House. Who requested how much for what. In
detail, online.
2. President to push for using surpluses to pay down debt.
3. President to issue objective of reducing government debt to under 50% of GDP.