A national debt, if it is not excessive, will be to us a national blessing. — Alexander Hamilton

A national debt, if it is not excessive, will be to us a national blessing.

Author: Alexander Hamilton

Insight: Debt gets a bad rap, but Hamilton saw something counterintuitive: borrowing money can actually strengthen a country if used wisely. It's like taking a mortgage to build a house—the debt itself isn't the problem; what matters is whether what you built is worth more than what you owe.

Source: Letter to Robert Morris (April 30, 1781)

A national debt, if it is not excessive, will be to us a national blessing.

Alexander HamiltonLetter to Robert Morris (April 30, 1781)

Insight

Debt gets a bad rap, but Hamilton saw something counterintuitive: borrowing money can actually strengthen a country if used wisely. It's like taking a mortgage to build a house—the debt itself isn't the problem; what matters is whether what you built is worth more than what you owe.

Comments

Sign in to leave a comment or reply to one.

Sign in

Alexander Hamilton

Alexander Hamilton (1755-1804) was an American statesman, political theorist, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He served as the first Secretary of the Treasury and was a key architect of the American financial system, advocating for a strong central government and the establishment of a national bank. Hamilton is also known for his influential contributions to The Federalist Papers, which argued for the ratification of the U.S. Constitution.

Graph

Related