Slate Money The National Debt Question
41 snips
Aug 9, 2025 
Mary Childs, co-host of Planet Money and author of 'The Bond King', dives into the intricate issues surrounding the national debt. She discusses why current concerns about fiscal deficits demand attention, contrasting them with historical precedents. The conversation reveals the political fallout from Trump's firing of the Bureau of Labor Statistics head, highlighting the trust crisis in economic data. Finally, they explore Tesla's hefty incentive package for Elon Musk and its implications for corporate governance.
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Raise Taxes Slightly To Address Deficit
- Elizabeth Spiers suggests modestly raising taxes on the rich as a practical way to close fiscal gaps.
- She argues small, targeted tax increases could meaningfully reduce deficits if politically possible.
Plumbing Failures, Not Just Deficits, Cause Crises
- The March–April 2020 money-market seizure showed plumbing failures can trigger systemic panic.
- Felix Salmon stresses market structure can cause crises independently of headline deficits.
Basis Trade Outsources Treasury Risk
- Mary Childs describes the basis trade where hedge funds hold cash Treasuries and short derivatives to capture tiny spreads.
- Heavy leverage turned that niche trade into a systemic plumbing vulnerability in 2020.
