Part 8/14:
Much like the lead-up to the 2008 financial crisis, Luke warns that the U.S. is on the brink of a fiscal crisis that will force difficult decisions. Entitlement programs—Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid—are now politically untouchable, especially as the older population (Baby Boomers) holds a disproportionate share of wealth, much of which is tied up in stocks and assets resilient enough to weather inflation better than the working class.
He argued that actual budget tensions are underreported because political willingness to address entitlements is essentially nonexistent. The analogy to 2006–2007 is striking; the signs of impending calamity are there, but extreme measures like default or forced austerity are politically unpalatable.