Steve Ballmer: Government lacks courage to balance budget
Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer on what is needed to rein in the government debt and the state of the markets.
Los Angeles Clippers owner and former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said on Monday that the federal government lacks courage when it comes to balancing the budget and lowering the deficit.
"Even if people know the numbers, there's no courage,” he told FOX Business’ Neil Cavuto. “Nobody wants to sacrifice anything in the short term so that we don't leave these huge debt and deficits to our children. That drives me crazy.”
The annual U.S. budget deficit is expected to surpass $1 trillion by 2020 after President Donald Trump’s tax cuts and the recently passed spending bill, according to the Congressional Budget Office. It projects the deficit to top $1.5 trillion by 2028.
Ballmer said the long-term fixed cost is forcing the government to continue spending on entitlement programs that are poorly managed.
“Unless we get a handle on those big costs, there is no way in heck those deficits will go away,” he said.