A national debt, if it is not excessive, will be to us a national blessing.

Hamilton made this remark in the early 1790s amid fierce debate over the new United States’ finances. As the first Secretary of the Treasury, he proposed federal assumption of state Revolutionary War debts and the creation of funded, interest-bearing national debt. His broader program—laid out in reports to Congress—aimed to establish public credit, stabilize the currency, and bind wealthy creditors’ interests to the federal government. Critics (notably Jeffersonians) feared corruption and monarchical tendencies, but Hamilton argued that a manageable, well-funded debt would strengthen the Union by making the government reliable to lenders and capable of raising funds in emergencies.

Hamilton’s line is often misunderstood as praising debt for its own sake. The qualifying clause—“if it is not excessive”—is central: he treats debt as a tool of statecraft when disciplined by credible taxation and regular interest payments. A “blessing” here means the creation of public credit and a stable market for government securities, which can lower borrowing costs, attract investment, and provide financial flexibility in crises such as war. It also has a political dimension: widespread ownership of federal debt can align influential citizens with the success of the national government. The quote thus encapsulates Hamilton’s belief that sound finance underwrites national power and cohesion.