An Associated Press story this week indicated the national debt will top $10 trillion — that's $10,000,000,000,000 — before President Bush leaves unless changes are made in our nation's spending/taxing habits.
 

    The payment on that debt ranks as the third highest expenditure for the federal government right now, behind only Social Security/Medicare benefits and defense spending. The payment on the debt totaled $430 billion last year, and that's in effect just the minimum payment, as the principal owed continues to grow at a mind-boggling rate of $1.4 billion a day.
 

    To put it into perspective, the AP reported that each man, woman, child and infant in the United States currently owes $30,000 in debt.
 

    The situation could become worse, however, if our leaders in Washington continue down this path. As more Baby Boomers retire, the cost of Social Security/Medicare will increase, while the number of employed people to pay for these benefits will decrease. Interest rates on loans to the U.S. could increase, meaning more money will be needed to cover the minimum payments and the deficit will be pushed higher. And the declining value of the dollar might make foreign investment in U.S. debt harder to find.
 

    Robert Bixby, executive director of the Concord Coalition, a bipartisan group that advocates eliminating federal deficits, said the current fiscal policies are not sustainable. "Yet too few of our elected leaders in Washington are willing to acknowledge the seriousness of the long-term fiscal problem and even fewer are willing to put it on the political agenda."
 

    Thus, we are hearing very little about the national debt from the huge field of candidates seeking the Republican and Democrat nominations for president. Yet the problem of the national debt is at the point where it can be reduced only through massive change in fiscal policy, which might include significant cuts in government spending, tax increases or both.
 

    It is up to U.S. citizens to make this issue a priority for lawmakers and those seeking the presidency. If we continue to remain complacent, the deficits will continue and the debt will grow past $10 trillion, as is predicted based on current spending patterns. This should not be a problem for future generations to solve; the time for bold action on the national debt is now.