Remember the Contract with America, and its pledge to balance the budget? Yep, that was the Republicans. You're right: the party is the Repugs now, no longer the conservative party, but yet another big spending statist party.
And yes, we, the people are to blame for having elected representatives who are not fiscally responsible. We want tax cuts, but aren't willing to insist on spending cuts to go along with it. Too many believe in the free lunch. I totally agree.
But, yes, the debt as a percentage of GDP is relevant. I suppose it could be used as you suggest, but, then, there doesn't seem to be a need to find an excuse to raise the debt anyway. Just borrow, borrow, and borrow some more.
Here's an analogy: A college student in the '60s, when gas was 25 cents and rent was $75 a month, had a debt of $1,000. His income, working at $1.25 an hour (minimum wage back then) for 20 hours, leaving time to study, would have been $1,300 per year, assuming a 52 week work year.
Flash forward: Now that same college student is a successful (insert name of favorite profession) earning $130,000 per year. He has a debt of $10,000 on his credit cards.
At which point is his debt the greatest? In the '60s it was 77% of his income. Now, it is 7.7% of his income.
Income and the value of the dollar have to be taken into account when calculating debt.
