U.S. economists list top election issues: NABE

foxbusiness.com:

Former Council of Economic Advisers chair Kevin Hassett reacts to Vice President Kamala Harris' economic plan and price controls proposal on 'The Evening Edit.' 

Whoever wins the White House in November will need to put three policy items at the top of the «To Do» list, according to 132 of the nation’s top economists. 

«A majority of panelists identifies budget deficits and immigration reform as the top two policy issues facing the next administration,» said National Association for Business Economics (NABE) President Ellen Zentner, chief economic strategist and global head of thematic and macro investing for Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. 

NABE’s August survey, released Monday, also listed the overall economy as the third priority. 

Economic Policy Survey August 2024  (NABE: Economic Policy Survey August 2024 )

Fifty-nine percent of participants listed budget deficits as the number one issue. The U.S. borrowed over $1.5 trillion over the first 10 months of the fiscal 2024 year, including more than $240 billion last month, according to the Congressional Budget Office’s Monthly Budget Review. 

Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, urged the next president not to waste time in confronting these issues.

«Our fiscal trajectory cannot be left on autopilot – the stakes are far too high and the consequences far too steep to leave our national debt climbing in perpetuity,» she warned in the report’s release.  

U.S. NATIONAL DEBT TRACKER

The national debt, which measures what the U.S. owes its creditors — stands at over $35 trillion through last week, according to the U.S. Treasury Department. Four decades ago, it averaged just over $900 billion. 

«Considering the sheer size of the