Amy B asked:


Does the size of the government’s debt and the size of the budget deficit indicate potential problems for the economy in any of these cases?

1. The government’s debt is relatively low, but the government is running a large budget deficit as it builds a high-speed rail system to connect the major cities of the nation.
2. The government’s debt is relatively high due to a recently ended deficit-financed war, but the government is now running only a small budget deficit.
3. The government’s debt is relatively low, but the government is running a budget deficit to finance the interest payments on the debt.

myself asked:


How does the debt system work, what happens when the other countries buy our debt, can they sell our debt to other countries, can they force us to pay our debts at any given time, please explain how the national debt system works?

Thanks, I need lots of details and really want to understand so thanks again for your help!

greatelderone asked:


I know the US external debt is around 12 trillion, but what is the composition of the said debt? Treasury securities? What?

And second, does anyone have figures for who owns this outstanding debt? I have heard for example that China owns anything from 400 Billion to over 1 trillion. Does anyone have definite figures of these?