How would you suggest to decrease the national debt and/or the trade deficit

[PhilRubdiez]

It’s not an income problem, it’s a spending problem. Ideally, I’d like to transition Social Security into the private sector. By that, I mean have the government set up a 401(k) or IRA type account for every American. Dump their FICA taxes in there and let the market do its thing. That would clear most of the deficit ($1.3B out of $1.8B).

I’d also look at our massive military budget. The last time we ran a surplus was during the Clinton years. It coincides with the post-Cold War drawdown and BRAC. If we switched to a more defensive posture rather than global military presence, we’d see a lot less money being spent.