Excellent discussion on the U.S. fiscal crisis with Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson.  They were co-chairs of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, commissioned by President Obama in 2010 to identify “…policies to improve the fiscal situation in the medium term and to achieve fiscal sustainability over the long run.”     Their final report and recommendations were eventually ignored by the White House and Congress — both parties.

Charlie cuts to an excerpt from a recent interview with former Reagan Chief of Staff and Treasury Secretary, and Bush #41  and Secretary of State,  James Baker,

…without the dollar as the reserve currency,  we [U.S.] would be Greece….(13:30 minutes)

This fits one of our worst case Black Swan scenarios where the sovereign debt/funding crisis spreads into some of the larger European countries, skips to Japan,  and then finally comes to the U.S. shores.    Maybe a low probability, but a very impact event.

We’ve given up hope on the Washington politicos, including President Obama,  to tackle the country’s structural deficit and skyrocketing debt, which is being funded and enabled by an incredibly irresponsible monetary policy, in our opinion.   The day of reckoning will come and the markets will eventually force the government’s hand.

This is an excellent discussion and well worth your time.

Click here for full interview.

 (click here if picture is not observable)