Why does the U.S. give out billions in foreign aid while it is in debt?
The U.S. gives relatively little foreign aid. It looks like a lot of foreign aid because of the following equation:(A little effort + big international interests) X (a huge economy) X (a huge population) = a fair amount.But relatively, we’re pretty stingy. Less than 1% of the budget goes to foreign aid. The largest chunk of that goes to Afghanistan: it’s targeted toward rebuilding that country in a way that heads off a renewed Taliban takeover and further terrorist threats to the U.S. coming from there.The rest of the foreign aid budget goes for a mix of strategic and compassionate purposes. See U.S. foreign aid: A waste of money or a boost to world stability? Here are the factsThe U.S. ranks toward the bottom of developed countries in terms of how much foreign aid it gives per person and per total income. As shown in the chart below:Annual Foreign Aid Spending per CapitaSource: (my chart based on data from List of development aid country donors - Wikipedia)So, the premise of the question, that the U.S. gives a lot of foreign aid, is mostly false. What about the implication, that we ought to direct that money to reducing the national debt instead?The foreign aid budget is $31 billion, out of a federal budget of $4.1 trillion, or about zero point seven percent (0.7%) The total massive national debt is currently $21 trillion. If the debt didn’t keep going up, and we just used that federal aid budget to pay it off, we could be debt free in a mere 677 years.Oh wait, the Trump tax reform from last December is scheduled to add another half a trillion to one point three trillion to the debt over the next ten years. Here's how the newly passed GOP tax bill will impact the economy, businesses, the deficit, and your wallet. So 677 years won’t be enough.But does saving money from the foreign aid budget actually save any money at all? Here’s what Defense Secretary Mattis had to say:"If you don't fund the State Department fully, then I need to buy more ammunition ultimately," Mattis said, before members of Congress at a National Security Advisory Council meeting, the US Global Leadership Coalition notes."So I think it's a cost-benefit ratio. The more that we put into the State Department's diplomacy, hopefully the less we have to put into a military budget as we deal with the outcome of an apparent American withdrawal from the international scene," Mattis continued. Mattis once said if State Department funding gets cut 'then I need to buy more ammunition'
Moving to another country to escape debt?
The technical answer is he will still owe the money. But if he truly gives up his citizenship there is no way to collect the debt. US laws don't apply to aliens outside of the USA. Student loans are not dischargeable in bankruptcy court. Obama is trying to create a plan where if you can't payback your student loans after 10 years they would be forgiven. Republicans are saying no already, but they're loving the Wall Street bailouts. I digress, short answer leaving the country doesn't remove the debt, but their not going to be able to do anything if you leave the country for good.
Is the USA a fair country?
EDIT: @Kojak - balllldddyyy!!! :) OK, look, it's easy for the super-rich to pay 70% of the taxes when they have 90% of the wealth. In fact, they are paying far less than their fair share. Next, Bill Gates was not born poor or even average. He had EVERY advantage growing up - his dad was a top-notch corporate lawyer, he went to the most expensive, prestigious private high school in Seattle, one of only a handful of high schools at that time that gave students access to a sophisticated computer to play around with, he went to Harvard and didn't even have to take out student loans, he was also lucky enough to be born with very high intelligence, high energy level, the right personality (inherited), etc. I'm not anti-rich - I admire Bill Gates and Warren Buffett as much as you do, and don't want to "punish" them. But they don't need the money - they have more than they need and are lucky enough to LOVE their work... all I'm asking is that they pay their fair share, like they did duri