The U.S. national debt currently stands at 62 percent of GDP, its highest level since WWII (CBO
2010, p.xii). Under plausible assumptions, this ratio will rise to at least 80 percent and possibly 185
percent of GDP by 2035 and continue increasing thereafter (CBO 2010, pp.x-xi). As the debt-ratio
increases, the U.S.’s creditors will demand higher and higher interest rates to continue financing this debt. This means ever larger deficits and ultimately a U.S. default.