The way I understand it (and please feel free to tell me if I'm wrong) when this country has a budget deficit that money comes from other countries loaning it to us.
With the US facing record deficits, someone should be framing this issue in such a way that normal people can understand.
My idea:
Our government is using America as collateral for a loan to cover it's wasteful spending. Just like any other loan, it will have to be paid someday. We can't just "Default" or "declare bankrupcy". That would have as disasterous an effect on our economy (and indeed the world economy) as it does on the average American's credit rating. Many people can relate to how bad spending habits can ruin a person's life, but does it ever occur to them that bad government spending can ruin a country?
Plus I think a lot of people would be disturbed by the idea that all these other countries OWN so much share in the U.S of A. (remember all that ruckus over [was it?]Clinton taking campaign donations from people from China...expand that to a national scale).
How do you think the Presidential candidates should be framing this issue? How do you think they can help people better understand exactly what such a high deficit can do to us?