The Treasury Department building in Washington. (Robert Miller/The Washington Post)

Robert J. Samuelson's Aug. 28 op-ed, "The truth about tax 'reform,' " expressed concerns that the costs of today's deficit spending by the government "would be transferred to future generations" and that increased government borrowing would lead to "crowding out of private investment."

The public debt passed on to future generations will be offset by their holdings of Treasury securities issued to finance the debt. So the net burden will be zero. Future generations will owe the debt, but they also will own the debt. As Republican President Abraham Lincoln said in his 1864 message to Congress, “Men can readily perceive that they cannot be much oppressed by a debt which they owe to themselves.”

While about one-third of our public debt  is owned by foreigners, that is a net benefit to the United States because such increased demand for Treasury securities raises their price and thus lowers the interest costs to the government and to the American taxpayer. If foreigners were to reduce their investment in Treasury securities, U.S. investors would increase their holdings, which we would owe to ourselves.

“Crowding out” of private investment happens when government spending or taxing increases, regardless of whether the increases are financed by taxes or borrowing.

Francis X. Cavanaugh, Washington

The writer was chief executive of the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board from 1986 to 1993 and an economist and federal debt manager at the Treasury Department from 1954 to 1986.