U.S.National wealth 118.3 trillion

October 7, 2009 3;07 p.m.

There is a lot of loose talk about the size of the American debt and the supposed threat of bankruptcy. But whenever we examine the burden of the debt we have to compare it to the wealth of the debtor. The 2010 budget of the U.S. government on p.199 of the Analytical perspectives section of the budget has a very useful table that reveals precisely this information. As of 2008 total US wealth net of claims by foreigners on the U.S. stood at 118.3 trillion U.S.2008 dollars. The total outstanding debt of the U.S. however stands at about   a tenth of that at 11.9 trillion dollars. Clearly solvency is not an issue.The burden of the debt is very manageable in relation to the national wealth.

Interestingly the total value of U.S. wealth is about twice what it was in 1995 when it stood at 54.1, trillion 1995 U.S. dollars according to the Bureau of the Budget in 1997.( See Frances X. Cavanaugh, The Truth about the National Debt:5 Myths and One Reality, Harvard Business School press, 1996 , p.24. Cavanaugh is a former U.S. Treasury Department and Federal retirement thrift investment board official. his book makes an excellent contribution to the debate.) National wealth data are very useful in fighting debt and deficit hysteria. the U.S. national wealth in 2008 consisted of 10.2 trillion of publicly owned assets, 54.2 trillion of privately owned assets, 57.2 trillion of education capital   and 3.9 trillion of R&D capital, for a total of 125.5 trillion.

Foreign claims on the U.S. which are subtracted from the above total amounted to 7.2 trillion dollars.