Is the US going bankrupt? Elon Musk raises alarms on rising national debt

Elon Musk has sounded the alarm on America's rising national debt. At a recent All-In summit hosted by the 'All-In Podcast,' the billionaire, who recently became the first person to boast 200 million followers on his social media platform X, warned, "America is going bankrupt extremely quickly, and everyone seems to be sort of whistling past the graveyard on this one."

Musk has been vocal about America's economic challenges. The concerns centre around the nation's rising national debt and interest payments. Musk shared a headline in July that read, "Interest payments on US national debt will shatter trillions this year, eating 76 per cent of all income taxes collected." Musk added, "America is going bankrupt btw."

According to Musk, the trillion dollars added to debt will pass through generations, forcing the kids and grandkids to pay the debt owed by the current government.

This begs the question: Can a country really go bankrupt? The answer is complicated since a federal government cannot file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Congress eventually has to decide to let the government default on its debt, or it can keep borrowing.

Many economists worry about uncontrolled inflation if the government continues to print money to meet its demands. The nonpartisan Peter G. Peterson Foundation claims that growing debt has an impact on the economy in several ways, including less confidence in the government's ability to repay debt, which would discourage private investment, and higher expenditure on interest payments that results in less money being invested in public infrastructure and economic growth.

Meanwhile, Republican nominee Donald Trump endorsed Elon Musk as the 'cost-cutter' in his cabinet. However, Trump acknowledged that Musk wouldn't be available for the full-time role.

The debate on rising debt rages on as presidential elections loom.