Asia Times Online, 13 Nov 2008, David P Goldman
The United States government needs to borrow US$1 trillion a year, before a new stimulus package, or handouts for the auto industry, or healthcare reform, or a dozen other spending programs promised by the incoming administration of president-elect Barack Obama. Where will the Treasury find the money?
A bizarre jump in the US Treasury's real cost of borrowing points to severe market disruption if the Treasury deficit continues to rise. It appears that the Treasury market is also a victim of global de-leveraging. The new administration has far less budgetary flexibility that it seems to think. In 1981, under comparable circumstances, Ronald Reagan had far greater room to maneuver. I conclude that the new administration is virtually powerless to prevent marked deterioration of the US economy.
Read More
