The president also stressed the importance of deleveraging for homeowners with mortgages. He outlined three solutions where banks could: rewrite loans with more consumer-friendly terms;?shift from lenders to equity-owners; and allow homeowners to temporarily lease properties and reconvert to mortgages at a later date. He proposed that if homeowners took advantage of current, low fixed interest rates, it could inject more than $50 billion a year back into the American economy.

At Revitalizing America in Dallas, President George W. Bush?noted that by fixing Social Security, we would begin to see a psychological shift in how seriously our citizens view the nation's long-term debt.

President Clinton also proposed reining in the cost of healthcare in order to improve the nation's balance sheet. Referring to our current spending levels, he said, "It's killing this country to keep increasing healthcare costs at three times the rate of inflation." Both presidents believe that healthcare costs could be reduced if customers were allowed to shop for insurance across states, and note that increasing the number of choices among consumers would lead to more competitive pricing.

To discuss how U.S. debt may impact your own investments, connect with your UBS Financial Advisor or find a?UBS Financial Advisor.