Economist Kotlikoff Declares Third-Party Candidacy for President

After employment, the second critical issue Kotlikoff cites is our nation's debt, whose true enormity "is carefully concealed from the public," he says. Retirees are now receiving, on average, more than $30,000 per capita in Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security benefits.

When the number of baby boomers collecting benefits rises to 78 million and we're paying $40,000 (in today's dollars), on average, to each of them, the annual cost will be over $3 trillion.  "This is a problem for which we need to do open heart surgery not administer more Band-Aids," he says.

To address runaway entitlements that Kotlikoff says benefits older Americans with wealth at the expense of younger Americans without it, the financial economist has drafted a number of "purple plans" aimed at appealing both to "red" Republicans and "blue" Democrats. These plans cover taxes, healthcare, Social Security, energy and more, and aim to restore financial equilibrium to costs and benefits. "You can't have per capita benefit levels growing at a 1.9% higher rate than GDP per capita for over 40 years," he says.

On health care, for example, Kotlikoff estimates we can get rid of 60% of the problem off the bat "by stabilizing health care spending. Give everybody a basic health insurance plan. Everybody gets a voucher, but it depends on your pre-existing health," with a diabetic, for example, getting a more generous voucher. "No health insurance company can turn them down. The government gives them a voucher and uses the tax system to pay for it," he adds.

Asked whom he'd choose as a vice presidential running mate if he became the Americans Elect third party candidate, Kotlikoff said his first choice would be "a former high ranking member of the military whom I know and respect deeply," but whom he would not identify because talks with this person are ongoing.

But he was clear he would not choose any of the current candidates: "Politicians have done us great harm. We don't need more politicians. We need an economics doctor. And national security has to be handled properly," for which reason he would want his running mate to have complementary experience in foreign and military affairs.

As for the incumbent, Kotlikoff says the policies from the 2009 stimulus to the present day have been misguided. "He and his team badly misread the nature of the economic malady. Consequently, they were applying the wrong medicine. Giving payroll tax cuts to people with jobs–how will that help people who don't have jobs?"