Voters Don’t Want a Shutdown, They Want Action on the National Debt Instead
Last Updated September 1, 2023
Congress faces a September 30 deadline to find agreement on a budget and avert a government shutdown. A vast majority of voters is urging them to come together to find a solution.
A new Peterson Foundation poll shows that nine-in-ten Americans want policymakers to work together to avoid a shutdown and focus on implementing solutions to our growing national debt. Strong majorities of voters across party lines believe a shutdown should be avoided because it harms the economy (77%) and because it distracts from America’s larger fiscal challenges (70%).
As Foundation CEO Michael Peterson said, “Nobody wins in a government shutdown, especially our economy and the American people.”
See the below infographic for further details on this new polling.
Further Reading
The Nation’s Fiscal Outlook Just Got Worse — Here’s Why
The CBO updated its budget and economic projections, which now show that federal deficits are projected to be $2.1 trillion higher over the next decade than the agency projected just a few months ago.
The Lawmakers We Elect in November Will Face a Series of Important Fiscal Decisions
Here are some of the major fiscal deadlines that the leaders we elect for the next two, four, and six years will face.
How Much Is the National Debt? What Are the Different Measures Used?
There are three widely used measures of federal debt. What are the important differences between these measurements?