At Tuesday’s debate, presidential candidates must address growing national debt

"As president, how will you fix the debt?"

It's a simple question. And it's one that should be asked at the first Democratic presidential primary debate here in Las Vegas on Tuesday and in future debates for both parties. Our national debt is the highest it has been as a share of the economy since World War II. Yet this issue has barely been a topic of discussion in the 2016 presidential campaign.

Democrats have been campaigning on reducing poverty and income inequality, boosting stagnant middle-class wages, making college more affordable and increasing funding for education and infrastructure. These are extremely important issues that should be part of the national conversation.

But we won't have the resources to solve those problems until we fix our long-term debt.

If we don't act, our $18 trillion public debt will grow from 74 percent of GDP this year to surpass the size of our economy in the next 25 years and grow unsustainably thereafter, according to the Congressional Budget Office. This level of debt not only hurts jobs and wages but it also prevents us from making important investments in areas like infrastructure and education.

CBO estimates that spending on infrastructure, research and education will decrease to nearly 7 percent of the economy, which is significantly below the historical average. While these investments are being squeezed, we're increasing our debt payments and financing yesterday's promises instead of investing in the next generation. By 2025, we'll be spending almost twice as much on debt interest as we would on children, according to a new report by the Urban Institute.

In other words, for every dollar of additional federal spending over the next 10 years, children's programs will get only 2 cents, compared with 30 cents on interest payments and 59 cents for major entitlement programs.

This is unacceptable. Maintaining a strong and modern infrastructure and making sure our children are equipped with the skills necessary to be successful in tomorrow's economy is one of the ways to create sustained economic growth. That's what my administration did here in Nevada, where we made infrastructure improvements that spurred the construction of 20 of the largest hotels ever constructed, creating thousands of jobs and helping grow the state's economy. We also invested in early childhood education to ensure that every child had a chance at a quality education.

These are the kinds of investments we need to be making as a country. But we will not have the budget flexibility to do so until we fix the debt.

That is why it's critically important that all candidates address this issue in an honest way in the upcoming debates. Some point to a reduced annual budget deficit as evidence that our debt problems are overstated. But annual deficits are projected to go back to over $1 trillion in the next decade, as the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget and the Campaign to Fix the Debt point out in their recent report on budget myths.

Candidates should offer solutions like pro-growth tax reform that raises revenues, eliminates unnecessary loopholes and makes America competitive internationally. We must also protect and strengthen Social Security for future generations. Doing so will free up room in the federal budget to invest in the next generation.

We owe it to our children to leave behind a financially secure and economically stable nation. And that starts by fixing the debt.

— Bob Miller, a Democrat, was governor of Nevada from 1989 to 1999 and is currently a member of the Governors Fiscal Leadership Council of the Campaign to Fix the Debt.