The Math Doesn’t Work

To the Editor:

As the Senate votes on the federal budget, let’s talk numbers. We’re $36 trillion in debt and climbing—yet Congress is about to raise the debt ceiling by another $4 trillion while simultaneously cutting revenue by $4.5 trillion through tax extensions.

The math doesn’t work.

Roughly half of our budget goes to Social Security (22%), Medicare (15%), and Medicaid (13%). Add defense spending (13–15%) and interest on the debt (around 10% and rising), and you’ve accounted for the vast majority of federal spending. These aren’t programs you can slash overnight without massive consequences.

So, what’s the plan? Apparently, it’s to bet everything on tariffs—which brought in just 2% of federal revenue in 2023. Even with aggressive expansion, they might reach 5% by 2025. But tariffs function as a hidden tax that hits working families hardest, while the wealthy reap the bulk of the tax cuts—25–30% of which go to the top 1% of earners (those making over $800,000 per year.)

Moody’s recently downgraded our credit outlook, citing Washington’s fiscal recklessness. That downgrade will make borrowing more expensive and accelerate our debt spiral.

Here’s what polls consistently show: Americans across party lines oppose cuts to Social Security and Medicare. We’re not asking for miracles—just basic fiscal responsibility. You can’t cut taxes for the wealthiest, rely on regressive tariffs to make up the difference, and expect the programs millions rely on to survive untouched.

We deserve leaders who are honest about the trade-offs. Because most of us can see what’s really happening: cuts to Social Security, Medicare, national parks, and public research programs are funding more tax breaks for those who need them least. When essential programs face the chopping block to pay for cuts at the top, we have to ask: What kind of country are we building?

One final thought: most of us, at some point, have been taken advantage of by someone who simply had more power. But few of us—or our children— have ever been seriously harmed by an “explicit” library book, or by a gay, trans, nonbinary person, or an undocumented immigrant. These are not the people taking from you.

The real shift has been happening quietly. The top 1% of Americans—“the smart ones” who pay little in taxes—have grown their share of national wealth from 23% in 1989 to 30% today. If you really need a target for your anger, this is a much better option.

Ian Julian La Grange