When split along political lines, Americans are finding it hard to agree on most things these days. Polarization has been rising for years, recently spilling over into increasingly partisan viewpoints and even outright hostility. So when an issue breaks through to concern Americans from all political stripes, it’s likely worth paying closer attention to.
Fears that the U.S. is digging itself deeper into debt and running up an ever-larger federal deficit is one of those rare topics where partisan stances converge. A poll from the Pew Research Center published Monday asked more than 5,000 Americans whether they considered specific issues a “very big problem” for the country. When asked about the federal deficit, 66% of Democrats and 62% of Republicans agreed, a more aligned view than Americans had on healthcare costs, inflation, or jobs.
The rare convergence in opinion comes as the nation’s debt has climbed to record levels and many nonpartisan fiscal monitors warn of growing fiscal strain. In March, the national debt exceeded $39 trillion, a mere five months after hitting $38 trillion.
Watchdogs and budget experts warn the deficit’s current track is unsustainable, in no small part due to the tens of billions the government is spending on interest to service its debt every single week. The heavy burden risks eventually crowding out the federal government’s ability to keep programs such as Social Security and Medicare funded.
Finding common ground
Americans have good reason to be concerned about national debt regardless of which way they vote.
Rising federal debt will affect Americans across the political spectrum by reshaping economic conditions that touch everyday life. By having to spend more to service its obligations, there is less fiscal room for the government to invest in roads, schools, public health, and research.
Higher debt, and a concern that the U.S. is struggling to pay for it, could also discourage international investment. The erosion of the U.S.’s image as a safe haven for investors would deal a heavy domestic blow, likely raising borrowing costs and rates for everything from car loans to mortgages. At the same time, rising debt would also likely manifest as higher prices. Debt means more money filters into the economy chasing the same amount of goods, which researchers have shown can lead to inflationary bouts.
While debt has risen under both Democratic and Republican administrations, politicians from both parties have seized on the deficit as a talking point, a message that appears to resonate with their electorate.
A survey published last month by the Peter G. Peterson Foundation found a vast majority of voters, including 94% of Democrats and 89% of Republicans, say the national debt is raising their cost of living, including prices for groceries and electricity. Most voters say they are more likely to back a candidate who presents a clear plan to tackle the debt, even if doing so means supporting a political party they would not normally cast a vote for.
A useful policy blank slate
The pervasive and long-lasting risks of high debt has made the topic more unifying for voters than traditional kitchen table issues. The recent Pew poll found that a slightly larger share of Americans see healthcare affordability and inflation as big problems than they do for the federal deficit, but views diverged significantly along party lines. While 74% of Democrats say inflation represents a pressing issue, only 55% of Republicans feel the same way. Only 60% of Republicans say they’re concerned about healthcare costs, compared to 85% of Democrats.
Other research and fiscal trackers have reached similar conclusions about the bipartisan salience of debt. A Gallup poll in March found 47% of Republicans and 45% of Democrats considered federal spending and the deficit a major concern, the closest the two groups felt on any issue other than terrorist attacks on U.S. soil.
While polarization in the U.S. these days is loud, it might not cut as deep as many fear. A 2021 study published in the Journal of Politics found that the dislike average Americans feel towards opposite voters tends to be directed at stereotyped and often ideological versions of the opposing party. When presented with a more representative sample of moderate voters, those hard views tend to mollify, the researchers found, as many saw eye-to-eye on several economic and social issues.
The national debt might encapsulate all those universal concerns into a single issue, its repercussions broad and wide-ranging enough that Americans can cast a number of kitchen table concerns onto it. Whichever party they belong to, politicians are likely to be rewarded by continuing to talk about debt as an issue heading into midterms. The Peter G. Peterson Foundation survey found that seven out of 10 voters this year are eager to hear more from candidates about how they plan on slowing the national debt’s upward march.
