by Dan Mitchell | Dec 18, 2025 | Big Government, Blogs, Taxation, Welfare and Entitlements
The United States faces a huge long-run fiscal problem because government is growing too fast. Entitlement programs are the main problem. For example, a rising burden of Social Security spending means that outlays will exceed revenues by $65.8...
by Dan Mitchell | Dec 16, 2025 | Blogs, Economics, Welfare and Entitlements
In Part I of this series, I explained that modern welfare states are in deep trouble because of falling birth rates. The core of the problem is that entitlement programs generally tax young people to subsidize old people. And fewer babies today means fewer workers...
by Dan Mitchell | Dec 14, 2025 | Big Government, Blogs, Welfare and Entitlements
I have a five-part series (here, here, here, here, and here) explaining that demographic decline will lead to fiscal crisis. The main takeaway is that entitlement programs are a ticking time bomb, and I castigate politicians who want...
by Dan Mitchell | Nov 29, 2025 | Blogs, Economics, Health Care, Welfare and Entitlements
Way back in 2009, I cited a very good article in The American Spectator in hopes of getting people to understand that the United States does not have a capitalist health care system (and I’ve...
by Dan Mitchell | Nov 28, 2025 | Big Government, Blogs, Economics, Government Spending, Welfare and Entitlements
I often get asked when the United States will suffer a Greek-style fiscal crisis. My answer is always “I don’t know,” though I freely admit we are heading in that direction. My lack of specificity isn’t merely because economists are lousy...
