War Bonds, Huh. What Are They Good For? Absolutely Nothing.
The parallels between the coronavirus and the battlefield don’t translate to the debt markets.
Just not these.
Photographer: Hulton Archive/Getty Images
The United States of America already has war bonds. They’re called Treasuries.
Apparently, that $17 trillion market, the largest in the world, isn’t enough for some people. White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said “I’m all for it” when asked on CNBC about the idea of the federal government issuing a “war bond” to fund relief efforts tied to the coronavirus pandemic. “This is a time, it seems to me, to sell bonds in order to raise money for the war effort, in this the pandemic effort,” he commented. Network personality Jim Cramer also shared his support for the idea on Twitter, calling for $1 trillion of 30-year bonds paying 2% interest.