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Economic Stimulus · Fiscal Policy · Government Spending · Public Finance
The U.S. government enacted the $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) in April 2020, allocating $300 billion for $1200 stimulus checks, a monumental sum the author Keith McBride contends the average American struggles to truly comprehend.
McBride asserts that politicians capitalize on the public's inherent difficulty in grasping such immense figures, often lumping trillions with millions and billions as simply "really large numbers" without a genuine understanding of their actual value. This perceived gap in financial literacy, according to McBride, enables the government to generate "trillions of dollars on demand, out of thin air." The article, published in "Making of a Millionaire," underscores a recurring pattern where the scale of government spending outpaces public comprehension, potentially impacting future fiscal policy and the electorate's ability to hold officials accountable for economic decisions.
This dynamic suggests a significant challenge in public financial education regarding national debt and large-scale economic interventions.
