What he is saying is that the inability of the US government to govern will impact in confidence re the issuance of US Govt debt.  The USA gets to issue at low rates as its the reserve currency of the world, a safe haven in a time of crises. But if people lose confidence in the ability of the US Govt to service/repay the debt then it will mean interest rates have to rise. Once this happens, it flows into valuation models, causing a crash of bonds, equities etc. He does make a good point, there have long been rumors of countries like China, Russia etc seeking to come up with a new 'reserve/trading' currency.  If this uncertainty grows it would be the time to strike.  China has been hoarding gold for a long, long time.  No one knows how much they really have.