Would You Loan Money to This Guy? -

Imagine your buddy makes far less money than he spends every month. He has maxed out all of his credit cards and yet keeps borrowing and spending as if he were a rich man. 
Would you loan him more money?
By the way, the person in the scenario is Uncle Sam. 
In this episode of the Midweek Memo, Mike Maharrey takes a deep dive into the U.S. financial situation and reveals that, despite what many people would like you to believe, everything is not fine. He highlights the extent of the debt and why it matters. 
In this episode, Mike also explains just how much gold there is in the world. (It's probably not as much as you think.)
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Mike opens the show with a hypothetical scenario. 
<blockquote>
"I’ve got a little thought experiment for you. Would you lend money to this dude? "He’s the head of a household. That household earns $52,446 and spends $73,378 — running a $20,932 annual deficit. Its total liabilities and unfunded promises amount to $1,361,788 against just $60,554 in assets, leaving it $1.3 million in the hole.
"I don’t know about you, but there is no way on God’s green earth I’d lend that guy a dime!"
</blockquote>
By the way, the person in this hypothetical situation is Uncle Sam. And the situation isn't hypothetical. 
Mike reveals the ugly truth – the U.S. government is insolvent.
<blockquote>
"This isn’t hyperbole. It’s not some kind of exaggeration of effect. In fact, I’d argue that it's an understatement. My conclusion is based on the plain reading of the Treasury Department’s recently released consolidated financial statements for fiscal year 2025. Uncle Sam ended the year with $6.06 trillion in total assets against $47.78 trillion in total liabilities. For you non-accountants out there – that’s not good."
</blockquote>
To put it into easy-to-understand terms, the U.S.government has $7.90 in liabilities for every dollar in assets. 
<blockquote>
"If the U.S. were a private business, it would be in bankruptcy court."
</blockquote>
And yet the government's financial statements got virtually no attention in the mainstream media.
Bike digs a little deeper into the numbers and points out that they don't even factor in Social Security and Medicare. 
The Forbes report argued, "The reckoning, long deferred, is becoming impossible to ignore.”
<blockquote>
"This is the part Forbes got wrong. It’s apparently not impossible to ignore because the mainstream continues to ignore it. As already noted, the Treasury released the data to the sound of crickets."
</blockquote>
Mike argues that there is virtually no effort to deal with this fiscal malaise. In fact, spending keeps going up.
<blockquote>
"In total, Uncle Sam spent $3.1 trillion through the first five months of fiscal 2026. That was up about 2 percent over the same period in fiscal ‘25. A 2 percent increase in spending might not sound significant. But weren't we told there would be spending cuts?"
</blockquote>
Mike acknowledges he will get some pushback for comparing the federal government to a household. 
<blockquote>
"Naysayers undoubtedly heard this and said, 'Well, Mike, you know you can’t compare a government to a household. After all, the U.S. has a credit card with no real limit, and it can print money. Furthermore, since the dollar is the reserve currency, it can print and borrow to its heart's content.'
"If you’re telling me this to ensure I understand the nuances of government finance, thanks. Got it. But if you’re saying this just to make America’s fiscal malfeasance seem more palatable, just stop. Anybody with an ounce of sense (and no political axe to grind) understands that the U.S. fiscal situation is unsustainable."
</blockquote>
Mike highlights two problems inherent in running massive debts. 
<ol>
<li>The interest problem</li>
<li>At some point, people stop loaning you money.</li>
</ol>
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Mike argues that the ever-increasing debt will lead to ever-increasing inflation. 
<blockquote>
"This is the part of the equation that your Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) people and others who pooh-pooh worries about the national debt miss. Sure, the government can print money to its heart’s content. However, it is constantly devaluing the currency to the detriment of its own people. That’s not a sustainable strategy."
</blockquote>
Mike emphasizes that the U.S. dollar doesn't have to lose its reserve status to cause significant problems.
<blockquote>
"Even a modest de-dollarization spells disaster. If the world needs fewer dollars, they will begin to return to the U.S., causing a dollar glut. This will increase inflationary pressure domestically as the value of the U.S. currency further depreciates. In the worst-case scenario, the dollar could collapse completely, leading to hyperinflation. So, go ahead. Act all superior and laugh at Forbes's unsophisticated comparison between government and household finances. You might be technically correct. But you’re missing the point. Everything isn’t fine. The debt matters, and those proverbial chickens will eventually come home to roost. Just because it hasn’t caused a problem yet doesn’t mean it won’t. The problem with playing 'kick the can down the road' is that you eventually run out of road."
</blockquote>
To close out the show, Mike shifts gears and explains exactly how much gold there is in the world. 
<blockquote>
"One of the things that makes gold valuable is its scarcity. But just how rare is gold?
"Based on best estimates, geologists at Metals Focus estimate that there are 219,890 tonnes of gold currently above ground. That sounds like a lot, but if you melted all that gold into a cube, it would only measure 22 meters on each side. That’s about 73 feet. To give you a visual, all the gold in the world would fit inside four-and-a-half Olympic-sized swimming pools."
</blockquote>
Mike goes on to highlight mining data and explains that the pace of new gold discoveries tends to roughly correspond with the amount of gold mined each year.
Some analysts believe we will eventually hit "peak gold." At that point, mining output will steadily decline. However, the World Gold Council believes gold production will remain on a plateau rather than peaking and then declining.
Mike emphasized that, regardless, the gold will remain scarce, unlike fiat currency, which is constantly being printed and devalued. To end the show, Mike issues a call to action, urging listeners to call 800-800-1865 and talk to a precious metals specialist today. He points out that gold and silver still appear to be on sale at current prices, so the time to act is now.
<h2>Articles Mentioned in the Show</h2>
<a href="https://www.moneymetals.com/news/2026/03/30/whats-the-real-inflation-rate-004797">What Is the Real Inflation Rate?</a>
<a href="https://www.moneymetals.com/news/2024/06/11/taxing-billionaires-isnt-a-solution-to-the-government-spending-problem-003250">Taxing Billionaires Isn't a Solution to the Government Spending Problem</a>
<a href="https://www.moneymetals.com/news/2026/03/19/national-debt-quietly-eclipses-39-trillion-004774">National Debt Quietly Eclipses $39 Trillion</a>

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