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Growing support for fed govt to sell assets to pay down debt

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    William La Jeunesse reports from Los Angeles, California

  • Duration 2:36
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There is growing support for the federal government to sell off billions of dollars worth of its property to help pay down our ballooning national debt.

Unused buildings land and other assets could fetch billions perhaps even trillions on the open market what do you think of that idea.

We much -- live in Los Angeles with more on this William.

-- -- why not have a massive garage sale that's what families do.

But they need money that the Tax Foundation called selling unused -- as an empty buildings one of the least worst options.

For raising cash.

From state owned businesses like Amtrak to vacant buildings like these in California.

Is it time for the federal government to sell what it doesn't need.

So instead of raising taxes.

Which takes money out of the economy and lowers economic activity.

We ought to be looking at selling the federal assets.

Like the MTV A hospital in Los Angeles for five billion or parts of this waterfront former military base in San Francisco.

In both cases politicians said no.

A congressman is representing his district the senators representing his or her state.

And so they want to make sure that they're taking care of and sometimes that may get in the way of what's best for the nation.

The federal government is also America's biggest landlord selling just 20% of its -- -- underperforming buildings would save.

Two billion dollars you go -- your career highs -- clear it out and the government is no different.

The scale is what we're -- it's just a matter of scale the feds also refused to sell valuable public land adjacent to fast growing cities.

And -- mining companies take billions in gold and silver -- free.

Without charging royalties like we do for oil and natural gas selling Amtrak could net sixty billion.

To taxpayer owned utilities the Tennessee Valley Authority and Bonneville power would bring in even more.

A commission could oversee the sale to overcome partisan opposition.

The commission could look at all of the federal assets decide which were the most valuable which could be.

Sold with the week's loss to the common good.

Now the federal government already owns about 20% of all the land in the US spot 500 billion in mineral rights that we give away we have trillions in oil reserves John that we refuse to pump.

So yes -- yard sale could help bring down the national debt but reuse recycle we -- are not words you often hear.

And Capitol Hill and that doesn't seem to happen very often William want to mess him Los Angeles -- thank you.

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