The National Debt

They call it red ink, we call it theft The national debt is what was left

[Verse 1]
Crystal glasses in a gilded hall
Watch that red line climb the wall
Laughing while the numbers rise
Selling us the same old lies
Cut the taxes, strike the match
Call it growth, don’t mind the catch
Forty-five years, the same old theft
Now they call it the national debt

[Pre-Chorus]
They said it would trickle down
All we got was a hollowed town
Factories closed, wages froze
But the money kept climbing where nobody goes

[Chorus]
Oh the national debt — who wrote the check?
Who cashed it in and broke our necks?
Thirty-eight trillion dollars sent
Up to the top — that’s where it went
Now a trillion a year just to repent
Interest due on the rent they spent
They call it red ink, we call it theft
The national debt is what was left

[Verse 2]
Schools went dark, bridges cracked
Healthcare dreams fade to black
Homes too high, pay too low
Wall Street’s garden only grows
They shout “crisis!” pound the drum
Blame the worker, blame the young
Slash and burn, then act upset
All to protect the national debt

[Bridge – stripped down]
Follow the money
Follow the trail
It didn’t vanish
It went upscale

[Final Chorus – stronger vocal]
Oh the national debt — it’s not a war
It’s a forty-five-year transfer score
A trillion a year in tribute sent
To the class that never pays a cent
So when they preach sacrifice
Remember who’s been living nice
The debt’s not fate, it’s policy set
The national debt is the receipt —
And we haven’t paid it yet