America is undeniably an economic powerhouse, but Tesla CEO Elon Musk — the richest person in the U.S. and the world — is sounding the alarm about its financial future.
“The country is going bankrupt. If we don’t take action, the dollar’s going to be worth nothing,” Musk said during a recent appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast.
Musk’s alarm centers on the ballooning U.S. national debt, which currently stands at $36.17 trillion. Managing this staggering debt comes with a hefty price: interest payments alone are a significant and growing strain on government finances.
“The interest payments, which are already 23% of all government income… is just going to pay interest right now, and that number is continually rising,” Musk explained. “So if we don’t do something, the entire government budget will be paying interest — there won’t be money for anything. No, there won’t be money for Social Security, there won’t be money for Medicare, nothing. That’s where we’re headed. That’s what bankruptcy means.”
The numbers paint a grim picture. In fiscal year 2024, interest on U.S. federal debt totaled $1.1265 trillion, while the federal government collected $4.92 trillion in revenue.
Musk stressed the urgency of the situation: “I’m looking at the numbers here and I’m like, if we don’t do something, America is toast.”