Steve Cortes recently told "Washington Watch" that lawmakers point fingers across the aisle.
"I am a right-winger," he clarified. "I am a Republican. I worked for President Trump, for Vice President Vance; I hope to work for only Republicans into the future. But I think we have to admit that we are also, as a party and as a movement, complicit in this inattention, in this irresponsibility that has led to this level of debt that is totally unsustainable."
Cortes warned that this debt is not just an abstract number on paper; it directly drives inflation and erodes everyday household budgets. Worse yet, higher interest rates mean taxpayers are now paying more than $1 trillion annually just to cover the interest on that debt.
"We're spending more to the bank, essentially, than we're spending on arms in the United States for the first time in American history," he explained, noting that we are about to close the second fiscal year in a row paying above $1 trillion in interest payments.
Some market analysts suggest an upcoming boom in artificial intelligence and technology could boost productivity enough to help the nation grow its way out of debt, but Cortes cautioned that relying on technology alone is not a viable economic plan.
"It's sort of like a football team saying, 'Hey, don't worry. We can throw an 80-yard bomb for a touchdown anytime we want.' Well, maybe you can, and it's wonderful if you do it, but it's not a good coaching strategy."
Cortes advocates for tighter immigration enforcement and domestic manufacturing incentives to lower entitlement costs and build long-term economic stability.
