The US confronts huge challenges, at home and abroad. Its fiscal position is not one of them. This is a highly controversial statement. If one judged by the debate in Washington, one would conclude that the federal government is close to bankruptcy. This view is false. Yes, the US does confront fiscal challenges in the long term. But these are largely caused by the soaring costs of its inefficient healthcare. Yes, the US is engaged in a fierce debate on fiscal policy. But this is due to philosophical disputes over the role of the state. Yes, the US has been running large fiscal deficits in the short run. But these are a result of the financial crisis.
美國在國內外都面臨著巨大挑戰。然而其財政狀況卻算不上什么大問題。這樣說可能會引起很大爭論。如果只看華盛頓的辯論情況，人們可能會以為聯邦政府快要破產了。然而這種看法是錯誤的。是的，美國長遠來看的確面臨財政上的挑戰，不過這在很大程度上是其低效率的醫療體系成本激增造成的。是的，美國在財政政策上陷入了激烈爭論之中，不過這是源于有關政府應扮演什么角色的哲學爭論。是的，美國確實在暫時背著巨大的財政赤字運轉，不過這是金融危機的結果。