With U.S. Debt Rising, Why Is the Dollar Stronger?

The standard explanations for what moves currency markets are lame. With the U.S. deficit forecast to hit $1.54 trillion in 2010 and the national debt at $12.3 trillion, why would anyone want to own the dollar? Yet somehow, the greenback has risen to an eight-month high relative to the euro. If it persists, that stronger dollar will alter the global economic and investment climate.