By Bill O'Reilly

It is now beyond a reasonable doubt that the president's economic policies are not working. Since Mr. Obama took office in January 2009, 2.5 million jobs have been lost in the private sector in the USA. Right now 25 percent of all Americans holding mortgages are in trouble, not able to pay their debts or losing value on their homes.

What Mr. Obama tried on the economy has not worked. The folks know that. Every poll shows the president getting unfavorable opinions on economic matters.

But there is much more in play than just Mr. Obama's political future. This country is in dire trouble, and that is not an exaggeration.

The gross domestic product is the total amount of all goods and services the USA puts out every year. Right now federal spending is 24 percent of the GDP. And if we continue to spend at this rate, the amount of debt America will hold will pass the entire GDP in 10 years. That means we are entering bankruptcy and default territory.

Right now the USA owes $14.4 trillion, and another $1.4 trillion will be added this year. So it is clear that not only is unemployment high, not only is housing a disaster, but the federal government continues to spend at a rate that is catastrophic.

So why is this happening? Well, it all boils down to political philosophy. President Obama is a liberal guy who believes the feds should run the economic show, and he hired advisers who believe that as well. The administration then set out to fight the recession by spending government money, the so-called stimulus, and that ran up trillions of dollars of debt.

Historically, the way out of recessions is to give the private sector lower tax rates and reward businesses for hiring people. But the Obama administration has resisted that.

So what the upcoming election comes down to is whether the American people understand the economic present and future. At this point in history, the USA needs a robust private marketplace and has to drastically cut government spending.

And that's "The Memo."

— You can catch Bill O'Reilly's "Talking Points Memo" weeknights at 8 and 11 p.m. ET on the Fox News Channel and any time on foxnews.com/oreilly. Send your comments to: oreilly@foxnews.com.