News · Press Release

Scott Garrett Signals Support for Donald Trump – Who Suggests Playing Games with U.S. Debt

North Jersey voters deserve to know why Garrett stands by Trump’s dangerous ideas that would tank our economy

Late last week, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump (who Scott Garrett has signaled his support for president) recklessly proposed defaulting on the U.S.’s debt as a way to restructure our country’s debt obligations.

“Donald Trump recklessly suggested turning our country into Greece – and Scott Garrett thinks he should be president,” said Bryan Lesswing at the DCCC. “Since Scott Garrett has endorsed Trump, North Jersey voters deserve to know why their congressman is standing by Trump’s dangerous ideas that trample on the Constitution, make our country less safe, and would even tank our economy.”

The suggestion prompted strong backlash from economic experts and editorial boards across the spectrum who argued the proposal would tank our economy and destabilize world markets. Here are just several examples:

  • Washington Post: “As evidence that this is a dangerous fallacy, we would cite Mr. Trump’s CNBC interview Thursday, in which he mused about getting control over nearly $19 trillion in federal debt […] Another name for this debt-reduction method would be: a giant cramdown imposed on the whole world, including the American people.” [Editorial, 5/6/16]
  • New York Times: “Mr. Trump’s statement might show the limits of translating his business acumen into the world of government finance. The United States simply cannot pursue a similar strategy.” [5/6/16]
  • Business Insider: “Trump — by openly saying that he would keep partial payment on the table as an option — could spark a crisis in the Treasury markets if he became president.” [5/6/16]
  • CNBC’s Ron Insana: “This would be a historic blunder and one that would throw the world markets into a very serious tizzy.” [MSBNC, 5/7/16]
  • NBC’s Andrea Mitchell: “He would let the U.S. become Greece.” [Meet the Press, 5/8/16]
  • Economist Austan Goolsbee: “The mere suggestion that holders of U.S. Treasurys might not be paid in full — a practice sometimes referred to as ‘haircutting’ for bondholders — would be ‘insane’ for Trump to make as president.” [Washington Post, 5/6/16]
  • Conservative Economist Douglas Holtz-Eakin: “It is the worst thing on the global stage to be viewed as an unreliable partner. You don’t want to be the North Korea of economics.” [Washington Post, 5/6/16]
  • Megan Greene, Chief Economist at Manulife: “It seems Trump is planning to try to run the country like one of his failed business ventures, and that does not bode well,” said Megan Greene, chief economist at Manulife.” [ABC News, 5/7/16]




Please make sure that the form field below is filled out correctly before submitting.