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- Robert Kiyosaki warned America's debt pile will fuel inflation and crush the US dollar.
- The government will print greenbacks to cover its soaring debt costs, eroding their value, he said.
- The "Rich Dad Poor Dad" author has raised the prospect of a severe recession and a market crash.
The US government has racked up onerous amounts of debt, paving the way for stubborn inflation and a dollar disaster, Robert Kiyosaki has warned.
"America is broke right now," the personal-finance guru said in a recent Fox Business interview. "America is in serious trouble financially because of the debt load."
The "Rich Dad Poor Dad" author bemoaned that the government's interest payments have ballooned, meaning it either has to cut back on parts of its budget, or issue more currency to pay its bills.
"I hate to say this but inflation's here to stay, incompetence is here to stay, and they're going to keep printing more money to pay for the debt," he said. "Unless we either cut back on entitlements or the military, which we won't do, I would rather have this, gold, than this they can print," he continued, holding up a gold coin and then a greenback.
The national debt has ballooned from $22 trillion in 2013 to close to $34 trillion today — an increase of more than 50% in a decade. It has surged in recent years as the government spent heavily to shore up the economy during the pandemic, and has poured money into infrastructure, clean energy, and other major programs since then.
"We're bankrupt," Kiyosaki said. "We just keep printing money to solve out problems, but we can't go on much longer."
The Rich Dad Company founder recommended investors buy gold and silver, as they can't be printed like dollars so they should retain their value better.
While some market commentators believe the Federal Reserve has managed to bring down inflation without causing a recession, Kiyosaki argued that a prolonged economic downturn still looms.
"Soft landing is a fantasy," he said in a X post on Wednesday. "Crash landing more likely."
Kiyosaki predicted financial markets would tank in another recent post, but framed a sell-off as an opportunity for brave investors to scoop up bargains.
"Afraid giant market collapse is here because 3 Stooges running White House, US Treasury, and Fed," he said. "For those in right mind set and prepared next Great Depression will be the best time of their lives. Please prepare. Please take care. Buy gold, silver, Bitcoin."
Kiyosaki is known for calling Lehman Brothers' collapse in 2008 and flagging troubles at Credit Suisse before its emergency acquisition by UBS this spring. Yet his warnings should be taken with a hefty dose of salt, as he's a vocal Trump supporter who's been critical of the Biden administration from the start. Moreover, both the stock market and the US economy have defied his dire predictions in recent years.