WAR On Debt Or Is It Debt From WAR?

Once again the United States national debt is top of mind and some of the biggest names in the financial world like Jamie Dimon JPMorgan warn of a catastrophic outcome.

With this consistent threat that looms over the American citizen concerning raising the debt ceiling which is another way of saying, swipe the credit card to to fund out of control spending. Let’s look at the history of how the United States got into debt to begin with. It’s all about war!

The United States national debt can be traced back to the Revolutionary War in the late 18th century when the United States borrowed money from foreign nations, such as France and the Netherlands, to finance the war effort.

After the war, the United States continued to borrow money to maintain the new nation’s infrastructure and economy. However, it was not until the Civil War in the early 1860s that the national debt began to reach significant levels.

During the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln authorized significant government spending to fund war efforts. The government issued bonds and printed paper money to finance the war, leading to a significant increase in the national debt.

In the following years, the national debt continued to rise and fall depending on economic conditions, congressional spending, and global events such as world wars.

One of the most notable increases in the national debt occurred during World War II when the government borrowed heavily to fund the war efforts. By 1945, the national debt had reached over 120% of the country’s GDP.

Since then, the national debt has continued to increase, reaching over $28 trillion as of 2021. Most of the debt is held by the US government, federal reserve banks, and foreign governments and institutional investors.

The national debt continues to be a topic of heated political debate, with some calling for increased government spending to stimulate the economy and others advocating for fiscal conservatism and deficit reduction.

Back to Jamie Dimon from JP Morgan. Now you’ll have a better understanding in the below article on why they have the ‘war room’. It could just be a coincidence, but probably not.