Friday, August 24, 2012

ARRA News Service: After Obama Pledged To Cut The Deficit In Half, We Got 4 Straight Year Of $1 Trillion+ Deficits

ARRA News Service: After Obama Pledged To Cut The Deficit In Half, We Got 4 Straight Year Of $1 Trillion+ Deficits

While much reporting this week focused on the warnings from the Congressional Budget Office of dire consequences of the fiscal cliff the country will hit in January if nothing is done, it’s also worth noting the deficit forecast that came with the report.

According to the CBO report, “For fiscal year 2012 (which ends on September 30), the federal budget deficit will total $1.1 trillion, CBO estimates, marking the fourth year in a row with a deficit of more than $1 trillion. . . . Federal debt held by the public will reach 73 percent of GDP by the end of this fiscal year—the highest level since 1950 and about twice the share that it measured at the end of 2007, before the financial crisis and recent recession.”