Do our leaders know that the deficit is NOT unsustainable?

[cthulu2016]

15. I agree with all of that except "pay down debt"

Raising taxes to pay down debt that does not need to be paid down (the point of the OP) would be the same as Republicans thinking we need to cut spending to pay down debt.

There is no economic reason, at this time, for the government to do anything even slightly contractionary to pay down debt when the unsustainability of the debt is primarily caused by contraction.

This is an important economic point -- it is okay to tax the rich more today only if that revenue is spent on something more stimulative than what the rich person was doing with it.

Paying down the debt is not stimulative at all.

I am fine with raising taxes on the rich for almost any purpose other than paying down the debt. Paying down the debt is just about the only thing in the world even less stimulative than letting the rich keep their money.

Tax them to fix additional bridges that otherwise would not be fixed? Cool.

Just not to decrease the deficit.