National Leaders Gather Today for Peterson Foundation’s 2019 Fiscal Summit: ‘Building America’s Future’
10th annual Fiscal Summit includes Speaker Nancy Pelosi, White House Acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney, House Budget Chairman John Yarmuth, Ways and Means Ranking Member Kevin Brady, New CBO Director Phillip Swagel and other leading policy voices from across the political spectrum
New poll released today: Americans across party lines agree that managing the U.S. debt will help us address critical national priorities
NEW YORK (JUNE 11, 2019) — The nation’s leading policy voices will gather today for the Peter G. Peterson Foundation’s 2019 Fiscal Summit: Building America’s Future. Amid heated debates over national priorities, one thing is certain: building America’s future will require significant resources. Leaders and experts at the 10th annual summit will explore the connection between fiscal sustainability and America’s ability to meet its most critical challenges.
“Our nation’s future is at stake, and we owe it to coming generations to build a stronger, smarter and more responsible foundation for America,” said Michael A. Peterson, CEO of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation. “Concerns about our nation’s most pressing challenges are rising, while our ability to address them is falling. Our high and rising debt and the rapidly growing interest costs that go with it are a threat to all important priorities. Today’s Fiscal Summit will explore how managing the debt will help put America on a path for prosperity, leadership and growth.”
Today’s Fiscal Summit agenda includes:
- • Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX), Ranking Member of the Committee on Ways and Means
- • House Budget Committee Chairman John Yarmuth (D-KY)
- • “Rising Debt in a Growing Economy: Perspectives on America’s Fiscal and Economic Dynamic,” a panel featuring Olivier Blanchard, Kent Smetters and Beth Ann Bovino
- • Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)
- • “From One Generation to the Next: Our Fiscal and Economic Legacy,” a panel featuring featuring Lanhee J. Chen, William Gale, former U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) and James Poterba
- • “Building the Future for a Changing Nation,” a panel featuring William H. Frey, Heather Hahn, Philip N. Jefferson and former U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings
- • Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney
- • New Congressional Budget Office Director Phillip Swagel.
- • Solutions Initiative 2019, unveiling and debating new fiscal sustainability plans created by seven think tanks from across the political and ideological spectrum.
Also today, the Peterson Foundation released the results of a new survey, conducted by Global Strategy Group and North Star Opinion Research, showing that Americans across party lines agree that managing the national debt will help our nation address its most pressing challenges. Wide majorities of Americans agree that managing the debt will:
- • Lead to a better future for the next generation (92%)
- • Make the economy more stable (86%)
- • Increase the ability to invest in infrastructure (81%) and education (79%)
- • Strengthen national security (76%)
- • Help improve healthcare (72%)
Click here to see the full results.
Email questions about covering the Fiscal Summit to jrosen@pgpf.org. Visit www.fiscalsummit.org for official biographies and more information.
Further Reading
Infographic: The National Debt Is Now More than $36 Trillion. What Does That Mean?
Although the national debt affects each of us, it may be difficult to put such a large number into perspective.
The Share of Americans Without Health Insurance in 2023 Remained Low
In 2023, 26 million people were uninsured. While that represents a significant portion of the population, the uninsured rate remained at one of its lowest levels in history.
The U.S. Just Had Its Highest Deficit Outside of Major War or Recession
One of the reasons to restrain debt and maintain a sustainable fiscal outlook is that emergencies arise that may necessitate federal support.