Ninety state officials — including governors, treasurers and legislative leaders from across the country — are warning President Donald Trump that the United States is nearing a financial breaking point, urging the administration and Congress to act immediately to stop a debt-driven national crisis.
In a blunt letter obtained by The New York Post, officials from Arizona, Pennsylvania, Texas and dozens of other states demanded that Washington deliver a plan by July 4, 2026, the nation’s 250th birthday, to put America on a path to a balanced budget. They warned that if leaders fail, the country could face not just a crash, but “a painful age of reckoning.”
“We will not only face a very painful day of reckoning, but a painful age of reckoning we never want to see,” the letter reads.
The crisis, they say, is already here: the national debt has surpassed $38 trillion, with no serious federal blueprint to address the spiraling burden.
The signatories, led by Indiana Gov. Mike Braun and several red-state fiscal chiefs, are calling on Trump to slash federal bureaucracy, remove spending mandates tied to federal aid, and open more U.S. resources to energy development and production.
They praised the aggressive cuts enacted by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which eliminated thousands of federal jobs, but said more drastic action is needed.
“The federal government caused this crisis and then ignored it,” said OJ Oleka, head of the State Financial Officers Foundation. “Now the states are sounding the alarm.”
The letter argues that if the federal government continues its current pace of spending, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are at risk of collapse — not in some distant future, but within a decade.
Citing Congressional Budget Office projections, the officials warn that Social Security trust funds could go insolvent by 2033, forcing retirees to suffer benefit cuts of more than 20%, or roughly $16,500 per year per retired couple.
“Younger citizens need a runway to prepare,” the letter states. “Our oldest and most vulnerable citizens need assurances.”
The appeal arrives as Trump continues to tout a plan to send $2,000 “dividend checks” to most Americans — money he claims will come from revenue generated by tariffs on imports.
But budget analysts estimate the payout could cost $600 billion, or nearly double the projected tariff revenue, potentially blowing a wider hole in the deficit.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has already attempted to temper expectations for the program, while critics warn it could deepen the crisis the states are now demanding Washington stop ignoring.
Lawmakers are demanding a bold fiscal blueprint by 2026, arguing the country should not celebrate its 250th year while drowning in debt.
The White House declined to comment on the letter or whether Trump is considering a deficit plan more aggressive than current budget proposals.
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One Response
No problem. The United States (as an alternative to cutting services or raising taxes) can just print money. Since it will be done all electronically (just press the “cheat” button at the Fed), no need to worry that it will cause deforestation or fill up landfills with worthless bills. Many countries did this already (Germany in the 1920s, Israel under the Labor party just before they found themselves as the permanent opposition party, more recently Brazil, Zimbabwe and Argentina). And wouldn’t it make America great if the minimum wage could go up to $1000/hour (it will the socialists happy), and every family in America will be millionaires (it will make MAGA happy). And can easily pay off the national debt without raising tax rates.