Remember, the U.S. doesn't have to pay off all its debt, and there's an easy way to fix it, Nobel laureate Paul Krugman says

The current U.S. debt stands at a record $34 trillion, as mentioned by economist Paul Krugman in a New York Times op-ed. According to Krugman, while the figure is indeed a record, the debt as a share of GDP is comparable to the levels seen at the end of World War II. He also points out that the current U.S. debt level is well below Japan's current debt burden and the U.K.'s postwar level, neither of which triggered a debt crisis. Krugman emphasizes that the key is stabilizing debt as a share of GDP rather than paying it all down. A recent study from the left-leaning Center for American Progress estimates that the U.S. needs to hike taxes or reduce spending by 2.1% of GDP to achieve that stabilization.

Paul Krugman suggests that the U.S. should focus on stabilizing debt as a share of GDP rather than paying it all down. He proposes that the U.S. needs to increase taxes or reduce spending by 2.1% of GDP in order to achieve this stabilization. Krugman points out that the tax revenue the U.S. government collects as a share of GDP is smaller than what other wealthy countries collect, and increasing it enough to stabilize debt isn't likely to hurt growth. He emphasizes that the main obstacle to managing the U.S. debt is politics, and that resolving debt concerns would require political will.