Peter Peterson is concerned about the future. He's decided to donate 1 billion dollars to the economic think tank that now bears his name--the Peterson Institute for Ineternational Economics --to battle what he sees as the nation's biggest challenge: debt. Here's what he wrote earlier this year in Newsweek to explain his decision: For the first time in my memory, the majority of the American people join me in believing that, on our current course, our children will not do as well as we have. For years, I have been saying that the American government, and America itself, has to change its spending and borrowing policies: the tens of trillions of dollars in unfunded entitlements and promises, the dangerous dependence on foreign capital, our pitiful level of savings, the metastasizing health-care costs, our energy gluttony. These structural deficits are unsustainable. Herb Stein, who served alongside me in the Nixon White House as chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, once drily observed, "If your horse dies, I suggest you dismount." And yet, we keep trying to ride this horse. The 81-year-old businessman's list of accomplishments is long, and includes founder of The Blackstone Group; Secretary of Commerce; and head of the Council on Foreign Relations. He spoke with Charlie Rose about the economy and about the national debt. Here are some excerpts: You can watch the full interview here . And read Peterson's Newsweek essay, Why I'm Giving Away A Billion Dollars , here .