Becker Private Equity & Business Podcast
Are There Any Real Republicans Left? 5-22-25
Thu, 22 May 2025
In this episode, Scott Becker questions the current state of fiscal conservatism in the Republican Party amid reports of a new tax bill that could add trillions to the national deficit.
Chapter 1: What is the main topic of this episode?
This is Scott Becker with the Becker Private Equity and Business Podcast. Today's discussion is, are there any real Republicans left? And so here is the concept. And I don't mean to offend anybody on the right or the left. I don't know where anybody is anymore anyways. But the Republican House is apparently ready to pass a tax bill
Chapter 2: How will the new tax bill affect the national deficit?
that would increase the deficit over the next 10 years by another $3 to $4 trillion or so. The deficit is already at $36 trillion plus, and this is a disaster, of course. You've already had a situation where Moody's has said that that budget deficit, the deficit we have has led them to reduce the credit rating of the United States.
Chapter 3: What are the implications of the U.S. credit rating downgrade?
In the long run, you can talk about Chairman Powell all you want, but the real cost of debt, long-term debt, is driven by how many people will buy the U.S. debt. And the more that the U.S. doesn't keep its fiscal housing order, the more challenging it becomes to have interest rates come down, at least real interest rates, because that's what really drives the cost of the debt.
Chapter 4: How does the U.S. debt affect long-term interest rates?
So when I look at this and I say if the Republicans stood for something back in the day— It was being fiscally conservative and fiscal hawks, and the Democrats always stood for taxing and spending, and the Republicans always stood for fiscal conservatism. It just seems over the course of the last 20 years, that has become a total disaster.
I do remember at one point in my life, a long time ago, we had balanced budgets for a few years. Then we had a $12 trillion deficit. Now, 20 years later, we've got a $36 trillion deficit. And it does seem like there is no one that's minding the store and everybody's working with voodoo economics to not worry about it. As we say often, debt kills nations. It kills companies. It kills families.
This is no different. We view this with great concern. Are there any Republicans left? That's today's topic. Thank you for listening to the Becker Private Equity and Business Podcast. Feel free, of course, at any time, text Scott Becker with your opinion. You could hate this. You could love it. That's my thoughts. I'm concerned about the deficits. 773-766-5322. Thank you for listening.