On the recordJanuary 1, 1791
The burthen of the national debt consists not in its being so many millions, or so many hundred millions, but in the quantity of taxes collected every year to pay the interest.
Said by
Thomas Paine
Source
gutenberg.orgThomas Paine: “The burthen of the national debt consists not in its being so many millions, or so many hundred millions, but in the…”
Editor's note · Context
In "Rights of Man," Paine defines the real burden of national debt as the annual taxes collected to service its interest, rather than the total capital sum.
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