Update on the Impending Budgepocalypse: U.S. to Run Second Largest Deficit in 65 Years
Yesterday, the Congressional Budget Office released its Monthly Budget Review, complete with updated deficit figures. The short version? The budget's in some serious fiscal pain; it's just not quite as bad as last year's. With just one month to go in the 2010 fiscal year, the U.S. has already rung up a $1.3 trillion deficit. If there's good news, it's that that figure is down slightly (about $70 billion) from the same month last year. But, as the CBO points out, it's only good news when compared to last year's record-setting deficit: "Relative to the size of the economy, this year's deficit is expected to be the second-largest shortfall in the past 65 years: At 9.1 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), that deficit will be exceeded only by last year's deficit of 9.9 percent of GDP." Overall, near-term deficit estimates have grown in recent months. In July, the administration revised its projections for this year and next upwards by a total of $150 billion. Whether or not the budget's current trajectory will eventually trigger a fiscal crisis isn't entirely clear. But the more the debt grows, the more likely a crisis becomes.
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Sigh, I remember when liberals like Jerry Brown used to point out how liberals should be very concerned about deficets, seeing as how some pretty wealthy people make quite a bit of money off of taxpayers via them. And there’s that little thing about stealing from future generations, the oft-invoked group we should champion…
Liberal elites like Obama and his ilk remind me of Dr. Smith in the old TV show Lost In Space. If only the Robinsons would acquiesce to the ‘superior intelligence’ and whims of Dr. Smith they’d be lost no more and would find their way home.
Danger! Danger! Danger!
Never fear! SMITH is here!
Was Smith gay? Or did he use the robot? Come to think of it, if Smith used the robot, is that gay?
Fucking robosexuals.
WHO THIS SMITH? THERE ONLY ONE SMITH, THAT STEVE(N) SMITH! STEVE RAPE ROBOT, BUT NOT LIKE METAL SPLINTERS!
A robosexual? Nevah! Good day sah! I said, GOOD DAY.
I get the feeling that Kevin Kline is channeling a bit of Dr. Smith for The Extra Man.
I like robots!
No homo.
I work with robots sometimes. Let me tell you, sex with them is not as much fun as you think.
Masturbating with a Nintendo Power Glove probably doesn’t count as sex with a robot. :p
Masturbating with a Nintendo Power Glove probably doesn’t count as sex with a robot.
Yeah, with humans it usually takes some length of time before the sex becomes mechanical.
What are you worried about? That money is being invested; the Ascended one said so. We’ll make it all back, and more!
Unfortunately, the President misspoke: That money is being divested.
Now, I’m leaving the Administration to, uh, to spend more time with my family.
Moar!
MOAR!
MOOOOOAAAAAR!!!
If you’re Paulie Krugnuts, does that make Ezra Klein Big Pussy?
You’ve buried the lede. After a deficit of 9.9% of GDP, with 9.1% of GDP this year, the Obama Administration is on a path to run a budget surplus in 2022!
2022? So soon?
You’ve got to spend money to make money. Unless you just print it.
Then you still need to buy the paper.
As always, the government is deliberately fudging the numbers. The publicly held national debt has actually increased by more than 1.4 trillion dollars already this fiscal year, and the total combined national debt has increased by more than $1.5 trillion.
And that is the worst part of all about our current deficits; almost all of it is now being added in the form of publicly held debt, much of it to foreign countries.
It’s pretty staggering to realize, but Obama is going to accumulate more publicly held in two years in office than the reviled George W. Bush did in eight.
Yep – I always look at the debt increase not the politically warped deficit.
It’s funny that the tax hike on the “rich” they want so badly won’t, in ten years, raise enough money to pay even one year’s worth of the deficit they’re creating. And it probably won’t raise as much money as they say it will.
And it probably won’t raise as much money as they say it will.
I hear that “the rich”, being rich and all, have enough money and motivation to engage in avoidance behavior. I mean, hell, I’m not rich and I engage in avoidance behavior.
You mean the tax hike passed by a Republican-controlled Congress and signed into law by George W. Bush? Yeah, crazy.
People who used to hold office have no power; the Democrats in office now do. Act or do not act, either way it is their choice and their responsibility.
$70 billion less, that’s it? I mean didn’t we grow funfty GDP percent this year more than last?
Deficits only mattered when I was President.
The reason the deficits are so big is because the fiscal year is too long. I propose shortening the fiscal year a month every year, until we get the deficits under control. Then we can start lengthening them a month per year. Now is not the time to not shorten the fiscal year !!
100% income tax rates for everyone. Problem solved, Comrades.
Not to worry. Once those health care savings kick in, all will be well.
CBO released the Monthly Budget Review on Tuesday, Sept. 7, 2010 not on Wednesday, Sept. 8, 2010.
“budgepocalypse” would make a perfect twitter hashtag to collect articles about all the states going bankrupt.
According to the US Treasury, the current publicly held US Federal Debt is $8.9T at a current average interest rate of 3.06%.
So, a 1% rise in the interest rate – say, brought on by nervous bondholders demanding better return – would wipe out that $70 billion reduction.
Bad link:
http://www.treasurydirect.gov/govt/govt.htm
Current interest rates are way beyond long term average interest rates
lower than, that is
You know, if we’re going to be Greece, we could at least have the beaches and the women.
As long as “the women” don’t look nor have the same politics as Olympia Dukakis…