After Bretton-Woods, there is a lot of demand for US dollars as a reserve currency. And due to the petrodollar, US dollars are also needed to buy oil.
The US is in a unique situation that lets it print a lot more money than other countries. At the end of the day, we will end this debt by printing money. Anyone buying bonds has to factor in the possibility that the US dollar the coupons are paid in will be devalued. It's not a "risk-free asset". It just depends on when and how the US will start printing money, and where that money will go. We did quantitative easing for years, but the banks didn't increase lending very much.
A good economy is when we should have been raising taxes and paying down our debt. But instead, the Trump administration presides over the biggest debt, deficit and trade deficit in our country's history. So it seems to me that the next Bernie administration will absolutely need to do large infra projects a la FDR, Green New Deal etc. because the recession may be severe.
Re: At the end of the day, we will end this debt by printing money.
Normally this risks runaway inflation, but inflation has been subpar of late such that some "printing" may not hurt. However, it's a bad habit to get into.
To force discipline, we need something similar to a balanced budget amendment that allows Keynesian stimulus when warranted. However, it will probably have to have a "timer clause" to kick in several years away and gradually, because the side-effects could be a dampening of the economy, hurting current law-maker's reelection. Spreading the bitter medicine out over time may make it more politically acceptable.
The US is in a unique situation that lets it print a lot more money than other countries. At the end of the day, we will end this debt by printing money. Anyone buying bonds has to factor in the possibility that the US dollar the coupons are paid in will be devalued. It's not a "risk-free asset". It just depends on when and how the US will start printing money, and where that money will go. We did quantitative easing for years, but the banks didn't increase lending very much.
A good economy is when we should have been raising taxes and paying down our debt. But instead, the Trump administration presides over the biggest debt, deficit and trade deficit in our country's history. So it seems to me that the next Bernie administration will absolutely need to do large infra projects a la FDR, Green New Deal etc. because the recession may be severe.